Latte Boy
by Yaoi Goddess of Doom
Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU
1. Dying Curiosity

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: Welcome back, or just welcome! I'm looking forward to completing this story, I pretty much have most of it planned out. This is a story with Lea/Riku, (the older Lea from Dream Drop Distance) and older short haired Riku (from Dream Drop Distance). I don't want anyone to think this is younger Lea from Birth by Sleep, so I wanted to clarify this. **

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Iced vanilla latte, sprinkled cinnamon on top, and a huge dollop of whipped cream.

It was the only order that Lea had remembered when working behind the counter as a barista. This particular customer would walk up in line, murmur an "Uh...I..." for the start of his order before Lea would cut the male off with a warm smile and a line he had grown used to, "The usual?"

Then the customer would nod and thank him softly, just enough for Lea to hear his voice one last time before the male would walk over to his usual spot in the corner of the coffee shop, away from people. Then Lea would prepare his iced coffee despite the fact that it was a bitter cold winter outside, glancing every so often at the male with short silver tresses whom always resumed his usual actions. His head shifted towards the window, chin rested on his hand as if he was looking outside at the bare trees that winter stripped naked, but Lea knew better. His customer was not looking outside, only merely staring in that direction lost in thought.

As Lea would serve the male's coffee at his table, he would smile politely and thank him once more. That was the end of the conversation for that moment as Lea would have to take point behind the counter just to serve other customers.

And there behind the register, the redhead would longingly gaze at the male before his attention would be broken every five minutes by another order or a gentle reminder from his coworker to "stop drooling and get brewing". But that didn't stop him from stealing glances at the silverette.

Just by examining him each day, he noticed other repetitious habits from the shorter male. After he received his coffee, his gaze from the window would shift over to his coffee. He would stir it for what seemed like forever or at least over the time that it was already mixed enough, and that same hazy look would return to his blue, or green, or even a mixture of the two, eyes. Lea counted approximately ten minutes that he would just sit there with that look and he knew whatever was on his mind was a heavy matter because he would catch sight of his mixed eyes watering. The customer would catch himself and grab a napkin, wiping his lips pretending that he spilled something in case anybody noticed him and then naturally dab his eyes.

There were many times that Lea would feel, just like this one, just to go sit across the table and let this silver haired stranger talk to him about what was wrong. Lea would be there to wrap his arms around him strongly, whisper that it was alright, and then allow the male to cry into his chest.

But Lea didn't even know the man's name, and it's not that he didn't try.

When the male would hand Lea a debit card instead of cash, he would try to sneakily cast a glance at the name of the card. But, everytime he swiped, the card faced away from him and before getting to turn it over and read, that was about the time that he handed it back to the silver haired male.

Lea even tried to ask other customers his name, but nobody ever knew him. It was unfortunate for Lea, but it was peculiar that not a single person would know his name. Maybe more frustrating and unlucky were more proper words since Lea was now dying to know his name.

"Just talk to him," a voice cut into his thoughts. Lea nearly jumped and stared at his blonde haired coworker, who was stacking more coffee cups. He stared at her in shock, his eyes darting from the silver haired male to her.

"What are you talking about?" Lea laughed nervously, grabbing a rag with a sudden need to work. He wiped the counter with vigorous circles, smiling at the blonde and then casting his gaze down at his reflection on the counter.

"That boy you're always staring at. You've goo-goo eyed him for, well, ever since he started coming here," Naminé said with a touch of glee lining her voice. "Just talk to him."

"But, I don't even know his name," Lea sighed out, continuously wiping the same spot on the counter.

"Then ask him," Naminé simply said, trotting away with an aura of happiness around her. She seemed to be enjoying Lea's little crush a bit too much to his dismay, but as he contemplated her suggestion, his circular movements slowed to a halt.

"The direct approach?" Lea murmured to himself. His emerald eyes casted on the lonely silver haired male, who was now sipping down the rest of his iced vanilla latte. Lea knew every time he finished his coffee, he liked to grab his straw and fish out the remaining whipped cream with chocolate drizzle and lick it off his straw.

It was an action that Lea found that a child would likely do with ice cream and therefore, found it cute.

Now was the time for the silver haired male to stand up, toss his finished iced coffee in the garbage, and walk back to the counter. Lea knew from experience that he would be approaching soon to go to the tip jar and drop a dollar inside, so he ripped his gaze away from the male to his working hand.

Lea saw the male drop the dollar in from the corner of his eye and he looked up as casually as he could and gave the silverette his signature warm lopsided smile.

"Thank you, sir," Lea said almost too exuberantly because whenever he talked to the male, even if it was the simplest sentence, his stomach was flitting with stinging bumblebees instead of butterflies.

Every time, the silver haired customer would smile out of politeness, but Lea still saw the somewhat somber oceanic eyes that contrasted with his happier lips.

"Have a nice day," he would say before he left, tying his black peacoat, adjusting his earmuffs, and lastly, wrap his contrastingly bright red scarf that appeared to be hand knitted.

"You too, sir."

And Lea would stare at the male leave, all the way through the windows of the eastern part of the coffee shop before he was finally out of view, never to be seen again until the same time tomorrow.

Lea would catch his name tomorrow because frankly, he was tired of calling the male "sir", when he appeared younger than himself.


	2. Fortunate Discovery

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **Yeaaah, still don't own Kingdom Hearts.

**A.N.: Here's the second chapter. I'm also working on a canon one shot and will post that soon. Enjoy!**

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If you fail in the beginning, just try and try again.

Lea had listened to Naminé's advice and decided to take the direct approach, but in a not so direct way. He had a brilliant plan that morning and waited for the usual daylight to roll by. He was absentmindedly placing more fresh muffins in the display case as the bell of the entrance rang, stating that someone had walked in. Lea glanced at the time and determined that his silver haired customer had walked in, before even meeting eyes with the male.

"Good morning," he greeted softly, pink lips slowly curling into a half smile. Even if it wasn't a real smile, Lea felt graced with the presence of something almost like it on his lips. "I, uh..."

"You want the usual?" Lea asked with a smirk. He grabbed a coffee cup and tossed it behind him, to which Naminé skillfully captured with her hand. Lea's stomach swooned in delight as the silverette's eyes expanded slightly and he laughed lightly, enjoying the small trick of the two baristas. The redhead had been planning that all morning and was pleased with the resulting sweet sounding noise that he heard.

"Yeah," he replied. He shoved his hands in his coat's pockets almost shyly.

"Your name, then?" Lea asked, eagerness building inside of him as he awaited the answer he had been wanting all along. The blonde barista behind him pulled a pen out of the back of her hair, pointing it towards the cup and ready to write.

"Huh?"

Lea froze up at the look of confusion on the other's face, and the slight tilt of his head. It was cute enough for his brain not to process correctly.

"Your name. We need to know it since you are our lucky one-thousandth customer!" Naminé convincingly joined in, thankfully saving Lea just in time.

"Me?" the silver haired questioned in shock, pointing to himself in emphasis. Lea was just seeing all sorts of emotions today from the other male and it was different from the mild and calm nature the other usually so possessed. It made him like the mysterious male even more.

"I won?" The silverette continued with a small blush.

"You won," Lea repeated with shy smile of his own that the silverette soon copied. "So, we need to know our lucky winner's name."

"Then, can you give the prize to the next customer? I'm sure they would be happier," the male said with a small smile. He took several awkward steps backward and then turned to sit at his usual corner spot.

Lea stood there stunned as his plan did not go accordingly.

"Your little boyfriend is very generous," Naminé mused as she set the empty cup down on the counter, tucking her pen in her tied hair.

"He's not my boyfriend," Lea muttered distractingly, his lips twisting to the side as he stared at the sitting silver haired male. Why did the male have to be too kind to hand off his "prize" to someone else? It made Lea disappointed that his plan did not work.

But more than disappointment, he found himself even more attracted to the unknown male because of his kindness.

After handing the coffee to the silver haired male and exchanging smiles, Lea dragged his feet over to the counter and leaned on the marble tiredly, his palm running over his face. He had been thinking all morning of a way to know the name of his gorgeous customer. Lea's brain was burned out at this point and incapable of thinking of sly ways to know his name. It would take an angel to hatch up a new plan.

As the time neared for the silverette to leave and bid Lea farewell, an angel was sent down to him in the form of a fellow coworker. The male was tying his peacoat tightly to go out into the cold as Lea busied himself with wiping some nearby tables.

Before the silverette turned to leave, a short shout of "Hey, Moonlight!" caused him and Lea respectively to look towards the owner of the voice, which happened to be Naminé.

"Are you referring to me?" the male asks with a clearly confused look.

"Yeah! It's a nickname!" she calls out with a smile full of glee. Lea is just as astonished as the male and he felt like shrinking into a minuscule particle for how outrageously embarrassing Naminé was. Who in the world gives a complete stranger a nickname, and why did it have to be someone he liked? Was she trying to kill him and his chances with humiliation?

"Kill me," Lea muttered under his breath, his hand wiping even vigorously faster.

It wasn't as bad as Lea had thought it to be as the silver haired male looks to the ground in embarrassment, slightly flustered that this girl would just nickname him out of the blue. "It's, it's Riku. H-have a nice day," he murmured loudly enough for Lea to catch it before he turned to leave.

Lea's breath caught. It was a simple name for a seemingly simple man, but it suited him in more ways than one.

"A shore," Lea mused as he glanced up at the ceiling. The meaning of Riku's name was literally the shore and that's what he personified. Eyes the color of the Caribbean, skin the tone of pale sand, and hair that was as silvery as the shells that washed up on the sand.

His name embodied his beauty.

"Boom," Naminé whispered as she walked past Lea. She possessed this sort of cockiness since she was this self-proclaimed winner of finding out Riku's name.

But, Lea was too absorbed in thanking the heavens for sending that angel.

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**To demure-nobody: **Aw thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying it so far. Thank you for the compliment. :3

**To gaara'sGurl101: **Most of this fanfiction is going to have those awkward/cute moments, I guarantee. I hope you'll enjoy the rest of the fanfiction!


	3. Falling Hard

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer:** Stilllllll don't own Kingdom Hearts.

**A.N.: Oh gosh, I only have time to post a chapter. I will answer your PMs as soon as possible. Sorry, I've been going around a lot since I am on vacation, and only have little time at home. Oh yeah, and if any time in my story I mistype Axel instead of Lea, tell me. Because since Lea is Axel's somebody, I often make a mistake and write Axel instead of Lea, even though they are different characters. Apologies in advance if it happens. I do read over my chapters, but I'm not perfect.**

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The next day, it snowed.

The weather report said the snow will get heavier as the day went on, but Lea and Naminé decided to open the coffee shop anyway. They both agreed that it would be safer, however, to close a little earlier than usual.

As Lea stared at the light flurries that were slowly falling, it was nearing that time for his silver haired customer, Riku, to come inside and order his coffee. He was continuing his daily task of wiping the counter clean of any coffee drops or sugar spills when he realized that minutes later, he did not meet the pale face of his new companion.

Lea only assumed it was the weather that held the other male up, and that he shouldn't expect the male to come on time every day (even if it was a habit). He busied himself with a mop, cleaning the floor with several wipes as he stalked about the shop.

Lea glanced back at the clock as it was now hours beyond the time Riku was supposed to arrive. He stared at the corner seat of the shop, hoping for the silver haired male to magically appear out of thin air.

But he never did.

And as Lea was trying to pass time by making himself busy, his emerald eyes gazed at the park right across the coffee shop. There, past the flurries of powdered snow, was a person sitting on a swing set. He would not have paid much attention if it were not for two reasons. Who in their right mind would want to be outside now, and why was Riku there on the swing by himself?

That red bright hand knitted scarf was what first gave away the identity of the male. Lea was glad that the weather did not prevent the silverette from venturing outside, but what bothered him was that he was not inside.

As it grew nearer to them closing shop, the sky was mildly dark. Lea kept turning his head towards the window, and Riku was still there. He had not moved from his original spot and was there for hours.

Lea did not prepare any iced Vanilla latte that day. But he did clean up more than usual, so it took less time to close up the shop at the end.

He locked the door, the snow now heavier and he was both feet deep in the snow. It was sticking which meant Lea had to leave now. But something pulled him to not leave right away.

Lea walked over to the male who was only swaying gently on the swing, his head perking up as the crunch of the snow gave away the redhead's presence.

"You're still here," Lea softly said, not sure how to strike up conversation with the male. Riku's feet planted on the ground beneath him to stop himself from moving. He did not answer verbally, but only gave a small nod. "Aren't you cold?"

Lea examined the pink flushed cheeks of the male, the shivering form, the amount of snow sticking to his covered body. Riku shook his head, even if he was shivering and even if his fingers were gripped tightly along the swing's chains.

"I know it's none of my business, but you should get home before you get sick," Lea murmured. "Plus there's going to be a storm tonight."

"I, I can't go home," Riku spoke for the first time. His head dangled sadly, and his hands slowly lowered on the chains.

"Do you need a ride?" Lea offered.

Riku glanced up with a bitten lip, and shook his head. "No. I can get there. I just can't get inside." His teeth chattered as he looked back down.

"Do you need somewhere to stay?" Lea asked.

Riku shook his head firmly, but his shivering convinced Lea otherwise. The redhead felt responsible for getting the male out of the cold. "Come on," he encouraged as he gently guided the silver haired male off the swing. Despite that he rejected Lea's help earlier with words, Riku let him do as he pleased. He was led to Lea's car and they soon took refuge from the growing snowstorm outside.

Without a word, Lea turned on the heater to warm the shivering male in the back seat. He reached underneath the driver's seat to grab a snow swiper.

"You stay in here and warm up, okay? I need to clean up the car before I drive," Lea informed with a smile, closing the door. He pulled his own gloves on, regretting he did not bring a scarf or hat. Oh well.

Lea circled around his car which already buried up to half of its wheels. Getting out would be easy as soon as he finished clearing his windows. With the snow brush, he swiped the glass of the frozen crystals. He dusted underneath his windshield wipers, back and front, and trailed over to Riku's side. After clearing the window on his side, he stared inside through the glass.

Riku was currently rubbing his hands together for needed warmth, his head tilted down towards them. His eyes then shifted towards Lea and they widened only slightly when he noticed the redhead staring at him.

Lea was overwhelmed by a strong burning in his cheeks, and he quickly went to the back of his car to clean the back window. Riku had caught him staring and that was embarrassing. He hadn't meant to.

With one big swipe on the window, he returned to the driver's side and went inside. He closed the door and let out a long breath and looked back with a small smile.

"H-hey, ready?" Lea stuttered, still embarrassed from before.

"Ready."

The redhead drove slowly through the snow, turning his windshield wipers on. It wasn't too safe to be driving in these conditions, but Lea drove with caution all the way to when he pulled into his driveway, which he would be shoveling the next morning when there would likely be no work.

Lea parked, turned off the ignition, and looked back at the no longer shivering male. "We're here."

Lea noticed the hesitant way Riku looked outside. "It's okay, we're just steps away from warmth," he assured with a smile, which the silver haired male gladly returned.

The redhead stepped out into the cold with the silverette. Lea would have take his time going inside, but any more time he would spend outside, he would have to see Riku slowly go back to his original shivering state. So naturally he hurried.

Of course, Lea forgot that the steps leading onto his porch had black ice since winter started.

His long legs were flailing and his arms were outstretched to balance himself and prevent him from falling. It was like comically watching a thin newborn dawn taking its first steps fresh out of its mother's womb. Lea would have fallen straight onto his back if it were not for a pair of hands gripping onto his waist at the last moment.

An unusually strong pair of hands.

"A-are you okay?" Riku asked with deep breaths, steadying Lea back up to stand straight. The redhead's emerald eyes expanded at the mere feeling of Riku's hands against a part of his body. The silver haired customer had saved him from an unsightly amount of bruises and even when he was trembling from the cold, Riku's glove covered palms still felt warm through his jacket.

"You're pretty strong for a small thing," Lea murmured out, stepping carefully with Riku still holding him to the door.

"I'm not that small." Riku smiled as he finally released the redhead. Lea gulped as he felt the warmth of Riku's hands leave his body. He was just saved by the cute silverette, and it was just so unbelievably casual.

Lea opened the front door of his home. He slipped off his soaked shoes from the snow and Riku followed doing the same. "You can set your jacket and things on the rack."

Riku nodded, slipping off his wet peacoat, gloves, and earmuffs with little care onto the rack. However, when it came to his bright, red scarf, he looked at it with a mixture of downcast and caring eyes before carefully setting it on a hook.

Lea figured the scarf may have had some value to the male. But, he was too distracted with the loose sweater Riku was wearing since it now casually hung off his shoulder, leaving it naked.

Without noticing the stare from the other male, Riku shrugged his clothing back into place, his shoulder now covered. Lea let out the breath he had been holding, not believing he had been distracted just by his porcelain skin.

Riku's eyes scanned around the living room he had stepped into and at an attempt for small talk, he said, "Nice house. I really like it."

"Yeah," Lea distractedly said, shaking his head to focus. "Uh, do you want to get into new clothes?" The redhead gestured to the bottom of Riku's jeans, both legs being moist due to stepping in the snow.

"Yes, if you are offering some?" Riku murmured out nervously with an embarrassed blush.

"Be back in a bit," Lea announced before leaving. If he was going to have Riku for the night, he had to learn some important lessons.

Lea needed to learn not to be a complete spaz in front of the silver haired male.

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**gaara'sGurl101:** I'm glad you do, because this story is going to be chock full of them. Sort of like those awkward teenage romances, but in a more mature way, as in out of high school.

**AuroraNyumun: **haha it's okay! I actually really like putting Naminé in this story. She's going to be a major help to Lea. It's weird how I put the crack trio in this story, I just realized that now actually. That's so weird because we literally talked about it not too long ago. I can't wait to post that Pride Lands fic. It's halfway through :3


	4. Accidents Happen

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer:** Stilllllll don't own Kingdom Hearts.

**A.N.: I'm glad I had time to upload and respond to my PMs. Sorry for the wait! Tomorrow is beach time again. Will upload again tomorrow HOPEFULLY!**

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As soon as Lea had given the silver haired male a pair of comfy biker shorts and a white tank top, he immediately regretted his choice of clothing.

Anything he chose for the male meant that Riku would wear it, and since the silver haired male was not picky (and Lea had hoped he would be), he took the clothes with a soft thanks. The redhead froze in place. They were the first clothes he grabbed from his casual pile but...

Was he unconsciously and secretly a pervert for picking out those clothes?

"I'm a sick bastard," Lea softly gasped.

As Riku changed into his clothing, Lea was secretly mortified at what he picked out. Because everywhere Riku walked, his eyes followed. Those shorts fit snugly around the cheeks of his butt, the front of his groin, and around his shapely thighs.

Lea eventually and slowly understood the meaning behind Riku's earlier words, "I'm not that small". The silver haired male had a toned muscular body that was not overly huge, and the tight shorts clearly showed that. The tank top he was wearing that was slightly baggy on Lea fit better on Riku and through the huge arm loop on the side of it, Lea saw past the clothing and had a glimpse of his toned pec.

Lea had to grab a pair of sweatpants for the male instead. A pair of questioning eyes looked at the redhead before the owner of them was gently pushed into a bathroom with a pair of sweatpants forced into his hands. Lea hoped Riku had gotten the hint to change into sweatpants. It felt wrong just to let the silverette walk around in barely anything, and Lea was NOT a pervert.

He excused himself to bed early lest he faint just in case Riku didn't change.

When he awoke the next morning, Lea nearly had forgotten he had a guest, so as he stripped his shirt on the way to his small laundry room, he froze at the mere sight of a sleeping silver angel on the way. There Riku was, buried up to his neck in the covers on the couch he had offered him to sleep on. His short silver hair was strewn about as if he moved a lot in his sleep.

Lea knelt down to the couch to inspect the male even closer. His lips were parted and released some even breaths. He was still contently in a deep sleep, or at least it seemed like it. Without thinking about the consequences, Lea's hand reached out to gently brush his fingers along Riku's cheek. It was so smooth, so soft-

Silver eyelashes fluttered open to reveal two murky teal eyes. Riku blankly stared ahead at him and Lea turned into a statue. His hand had froze and was still touching Riku's face, but the silverette seemed to not notice.

When Riku sat up, stretched his arms above his head, and released a big, tired yawn, Lea relaxed and his arms started working again. However, his eyes trailed down to the blankets that slid off Riku's body.

His white tank top hiked up during his sleep to show the beginning signs of abs that were starting to peek out of skin.

Lea suddenly felt like a toothpick compared to this attractive customer.

"What...what time is it?" Riku drawled out, rubbing his eyes with gently closed fists.

"Around nine," Lea said in no more than a whisper. His throat was full of cotton and he cleared it with a loud noise. He forced his eyeballs towards his window only to see it no longer snowing outside. However, half the window was covered with snow as a result of the snow, which means he was stuck in this house alone with Riku.

"Oh man, it snowed a lot," Riku murmured as he followed Lea's line of sight. He almost looked apologetic as he threw the covers off of himself. "I'm sorry, I'm going to be stuck here again, huh."

Lea was glad to see Riku had worn the sweatpants. He was even more glad to see the silverette fix and pull down his shirt. "It's alright. So since you're here, want some coffee and something to eat?"

Riku ran his hands through his messy hair, smiling at Lea. "Yeah, sure. That'd be nice, Lea."

The redhead froze, his body posed in an awkward stance. Hearing his name leave the silverette's mouth had shocked him for a moment. "You know my name?"

"Nametag," Riku simply said with a small smile, standing up with a laugh.

Lea glanced down and flushed with embarrassment. There was his blue-collared orange work shirt with the name tag still on it, showing he had went to sleep with his work clothes on. He sprinted through the house like a fool only to change into some basketball shorts and a t-shirt.

How embarrassing.

Minutes later, Lea strolled into the kitchen and prepared breakfast with coffee for the two of them. "It may not be an iced vanilla latte, but it'll do," Lea said with a smile, sliding the mug over to the sitting silverette.

"Thanks." Riku looked over his breakfast. Lea took note of the hungry glazed look in them, but they soon turned murky. It was similar to how his customer would act right after he received his coffee.

Riku was picking at his food slowly and Lea was about to comment about the food getting cold, but held his tongue. Instead, he tried a happier approach and grabbed his kitchen radio to fill the kitchen with cheery noise. As Lea turned on the radio, he scrolled through the stations. He chuckled as he stopped at a station that was playing some classic old songs.

"You know how to dance to this?" Lea asked, referring to the song that was playing on the radio, Jailhouse Rock.

"Huh?" Riku's head jerked up with questionable eyes. "No, I don't."

That was all that was said on the subject, or at least that's what the shorter male had been expecting. What had actually happened was that Lea stood up with some released energy, gently grabbing the other male's arm and encouraging him to stand up.

"C'mon, I'll show you!"

Riku's words stuttered out of his mouth, and he shook his head with wide eyes. His mouth was caught in an open gape, repeating the words, "Oh no, no, I have two left feet. No, no."

Even so, Lea forced the protesting male right onto his feet with a hand. He used his other hand to snap to the beat and the whole time, he kept a smile on his face. "Okay, so basically, you have to go feet and hip crazy."

"Really, I don't know how to- woah!" Riku was suddenly whisked by two pulling persistent hands.

The silver haired male had no clue as to what the barista was doing. His feet were moving in a rhythmic pattern and although he was trying to keep up, he was failing immensely due to the fact he had no dancing in his blood at all.

But, even as he was failing, Lea danced with the inexperienced male, swinging their arms back and forth, his legs and his heels bouncing. Eventually, Riku caught on and as ridiculous as he felt, his body swung back and fro.

Then Lea heard the beautiful noise of laughter leave Riku's mouth.

As the song finished and left the uncoordinated and coordinated pair panting, Lea commented, "See, not so shabby."

Riku leaned against the counter, laughing freely now. He may have felt and looked like a complete idiot, but he admitted, "That was the most fun I've had in a while."

Lea's chuckle slowly died as he tried to figure out the meaning of Riku's words. The silver haired male still smiled, his eyes closed. He no longer looked solemn like before, but blissful now. Lea wanted to make him feel like this every day just to get that sad look out of his eyes.

"Thank you," Riku murmured.

It was strange what a couple of words from the male would do to Lea. It was as if a magnetic force was causing the redhead to walk over to Riku boldly. As Riku's eyelids finally lifted, Lea had closed the distance between them.

Lea's hand casually held the counter, his body increasingly close to the silverette. He was leaning over slowly and Riku wondered what he was doing.

"Lea?" Riku murmured in concern. But, when he finally got the hint of Lea's objective, the distance between the redhead's leaning head and his own decreased until a pair of lips grazed against his.

And that's all the kiss was, a gentle graze of soft pouty flesh against flesh.

Lea couldn't refrain himself from kissing Riku, even if the male was unresponsive. Something about the male's words made his insides all fuzzy. Riku admitted Lea had made him happy in the longest time. It meant the redhead had given him something as wonderful as happiness, so he thought a kiss would give him something more and would show that Lea was the person to keep giving him that happiness.

But, as Lea pulled away, the look of shock instead of the adoration he had expected came across Riku's face.

"I'm, I'm so sorry," Riku murmured awkwardly. Lea wondered why he would be saying sorry if he wasn't the one that pursued this, but it all made sense to him with the next words. "I have...I have a fiancé. And..."

Lea felt like he was punched in the gut twice. Something knocked the wind out of him at that moment and he did not want to trust his voice. But, something fought to get out of his throat and he nearly choked out, "Oh, oh my god. I'm sorry, I..."

Lea realized how close he was to Riku and he backed away significantly. His fingers ran over his own lips in the utter shock of what he just did. What was he thinking?

He wasn't thinking.

"I'm so sorry," Lea repeated. As Riku nervously glanced down, Lea shuffled past the table to grab some clothes for the outside. He threw on yesterday's jeans and wore his heaviest winter clothing. He felt like a coward for running away from his problems, but he didn't want to make Riku any more comfortable by sticking around him.

"Where are you going?" Riku asked curiously, mildly blushing from the embarrassing awkward moment shared between them. Lea fully knew the question was to break this tension, but his nerves weren't having that.

"To shovel," Lea answered, avoiding eye contact.

"O-oh. Okay, have fun."

Awkward indeed. Lea knew he had made Riku so uncomfortable to say things that made no sense. Why would someone have fun shoveling the snow?

Through the whole day and even all the way through the night, barely any words were exchanged between the two men, even over lunch and dinner. It was mostly due to Lea politely avoiding the silver haired male and not striking any conversation.

It may have been a wrong approach, but Lea felt compelled to not say or do anything about it. After all, he felt like a home wrecker for kissing a man who was destined to be married soon.

As Lea was being this gentlemanly self to the time he was going to sleep, even he couldn't stop imagining the feel of Riku's lips against his own.

* * *

**To AuroraNyumun: **Oh god, I'm gonna poop cuteness all over this fanfic! I'm going to enjoy every minute of it! And I replied to you, sorry for the wait!

**To Ignie:** Oh hello! Glad you're liking- no- loving it! I love your eagerness. :3

**To gaara'sGurl101:** Your wish is my command! -bows- Here is a chapter for my lady.


	5. Ten Digits

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **Stilllllll not able to own Kingdom Hearts lol.

**A.N.: I'm doing pretty good with consistent uploads, but watch me fail next time! Sorry! -goofy smile- I'm sorry my chapter are shorter than usual. I just want to get a good flow for this story.**

* * *

The snow had plenty of time to melt as it neared the next morning.

This time, Lea knew he wouldn't be able to give the space he was willing to put between himself and Riku. There was the matter of him going to work and not being able to leave the silverette here by himself. He also didn't want to disturb the angel from his slumber, but he had no choice.

Lea had to gently wake up the male and offered to drive him to his place on the way back to his job. But, the silver haired male refused even if Lea slightly worried.

But he had a job to go to and would have to trust Riku's word, so he left the house and went. He was currently stashing more plastic utensils into containers and refilling the sugar on the counter.

There was this building bundle of anticipation as he realized that now was around the time Riku would be arriving in the shop. Unlike yesterday, he was right on time, only he had apprehension lining his expression.

Lea quickly leaned over the counter to hiss at Naminé, "Take his order for me."

"What?" Naminé asked back with a whisper, but Lea escaped into the employee's bathroom before she knew it. He splashed his face with water in an attempt to calm down and tied his hair back into an unruly ponytail. He covered the top of his head with a green bandana and peeked out of the restroom just in time to see Riku's iced coffee being served.

Lea breathed a sigh of relief and went to lean over the counter in a nervous manner. His body rocked back and forth and his fingers were jittery.

"Riku slept over my house yesterday," Lea explained as he bit his bottom lip. Like the thirsty girl for gossip she was, Naminé leaned over interestedly.

"Oh my gosh, you guys totally did it," the blonde concluded with a blush on her face.

"No, no, no it wasn't like that at all. I kissed him, on the lips."

"Okaaaay," Naminé drawled out, obviously waiting for more. She looked disappointed as she pouted. "Don't tell me that's the end of the story."

"He's got a fiancé."

"Oh, Lea, I'm sorry," she apologized. She twirled her hair absentmindedly sighing, "All the good ones are gone, hmm?"

"And I still like him," Lea hissed out, accentuating the problem of his situation. Now he had Naminé's full undivided attention once again.

At this Naminé immediately shook her head in obvious denial. "No. No way, Lea. You stop liking that man this instant."

"Naminé, yesterday I made him laugh. Usually I get nothing more than a polite smile, but he laughed. He's usually so solemn looking," Lea explained, his eyes unable to stop peeking at the person they were discussing about.

"Lea," she started seriously, grabbing a hold of his shoulders. "Do. Not. Mess. With. Someone. Who. Has. A. Fiancé."

Lea turned his head towards the sitting silver haired customer. His eyebrows furrowed in concern as Riku returned to his old solemn habits of staring out into the window, stirring his coffee, dabbing his wet eyes, then getting up to leave the store with a completely full cup of iced coffee-

"Lea, no," she hissed before the redhead turned away to follow his customer outside on the wooden bench.

He immediately received Riku's attention from the door's ringing bell, and was in the middle of wiping his newly forming tears. Riku immediately glanced down at the concrete ground.

Lea didn't know how to start this exactly and anything he would say would just be awkward. He looked down at Riku who was quietly wiping his eyes with his napkin, and then he froze.

In the short amount of time that he arrived at work, what caused the male to actually excuse himself outside to manage his leaking eyes? Lea assumed the worst, deeming himself as the cause of this.

"Oh my god, you told your fiancé that someone kissed you," Lea whispered out sadly, running his hand stressfully through his hair. "And she left you."

"What?"

"Oh my god, I ruined your relationship," Lea murmured with a shocked tone. "You told her and she doesn't want you anymore."

"Him," Riku corrected, staring at Lea as he plopped himself on the seat next to the silverette. The redhead buried his head in his hands and growled out in frustration.

"I'll do anything to get you back together with him. I'll, I'll convince him that I kissed you and that you had nothing to do with it." Lea leaned his head back up and apologetically looked at Riku. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry..."

Lea wondered why Riku just quietly stared at him and why he burst into a small smile.

"You're very caring, Lea, but none of that happened. If you're wondering why I'm crying, it's because of something else," Riku explained, the corner of his lips still lifting.

"Oh," Lea said stupidly, now feeling like an awkward moron. "I, then...why are you- well. It's not my place to ask. Uh..."

Riku stared as the redhead fumbled for words and his face leaned in encouragingly trying to get a coherent sentence out of the stuttering male. "Yeah?"

"I could be your shoulder to lean on, if you ever...need it. I like it when you laugh."

Riku chuckled at Lea's choice of words. They didn't flow eloquently, but they still weaved together in a way that showed the redhead cared about him, even if he was a stranger.

"If you ever want to talk sometime in a quiet place, we could, we could go somewhere together alone," Lea offered with a smile. He was feeling more and more nervous as Riku kept staring at him, only blinking whenever he needed to without a trace of a smile on his face. Then the redhead rushed out, "Not like a date or anything, got it memorized?"

Riku burst out in the most exuberant laughter then, causing Lea to nearly slip off his own seat in surprise. The redhead held onto his own racing heart, getting startled and he joined in with Riku's laughter, trying to mask his sudden jump of fear.

"What a strange phrase. Sure, I would like to go out with you sometime. I need a friend right now, if you couldn't tell..."

Lea breathed out slowly and nodded. There, they exchanged cell phone numbers, Riku laughing at Lea for punching in the numbers incorrectly at least three times. His fingers weren't stable enough to handle such a simple task due to the fact it was cold outside.

"Just call me when you want to...go on an outgoing," Riku said carefully with a small blush, avoiding the word "date" at all costs. Lea was glad for that since he would most likely melt into a puddle right on the spot if he uttered something like that.

"Okay. I should go back to..." Lea trailed off as he stood up, letting his finger point to the café to make up for his lack of words.

"Yeah, you should go back to work."

Lea smiled as they waved their goodbyes. Even the persistent glare and a disappointing head shake from Naminé didn't waver his smile. He looked down to see Riku's phone number on his phone to make sure today was real.

Yeah, it was real.

* * *

**To AuroraNyumun:** Yes, I feel a little bad for doing that to Lea, but I'll soon amend for it! And wow, I got two best buddies here! You guys seem to make a great pair! XD crazy friendships are the best!

**To Ignie:** A chocolate vanilla twist. My favorite flavor! And haha, I'm going to get rid of this fiancé...VIOLENTLY. Noooo, just kidding! It's nice to meet Aurora's best friend, so hi!

**To gaara'sGurl101:** You had me laughing for a good two minutes there! It's because I would say the same thing, but damn Riku's gotta have his stupid morals! Just cheat already and go with that beautiful redheaded man, and make beautiful babies together!


	6. Breathtaking Beauty

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **Stilllllll not able to own Kingdom Hearts lol.

**A.N.: Ok, I apologize for the wait. Anyways, this chapter is a little longer than the others and for those who don't like heavy reading, I'm sorry for the length. I also apologize for the way I ended this chapter (to me, it sounded slightly more abrupt than other chapters), but if I had continued writing, the chapter would have been LONGER. It would look awkward for this super loooong chapter to be in a story full of short chapters. So I had to break it this way.**

* * *

What should have taken him several minutes to do took several hours for Lea when he was currently taking a short break from his shift.

He was hesitant in dialing Riku's number, only somewhat unconfident with his plan for the two of them. He naturally picked a place that was quiet enough for them to talk, but still enjoyable for going out. But, what if Riku thought the idea was lame?

There would be only one way to figure out. Lea dialed the number and waited for the silver haired male to pick up. He was about to ditch before the third ring, but a voice picked up on the other line.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Riku, this is Lea. Do you have a minute?" Lea asked cooly. Or at least he thought it came out in a chill, even tone.

"Hmm, sure Lea. What's up?" Lea nearly stuttered for words, until Riku laughed out slightly. He was just making a fool of himself for no reason. Well, actually, it was one reason and that was because Riku's voice was so attractively close to his ear.

"Uh, how do you feel about hanging out at the aquarium?"

Lea regretted the suggestion as soon as it came out of his mouth. It sounded so UNCOOL when he mentioned it out loud. What made him think of something so stupid? As if Riku thought looking at fish was interesting.

Lea slumped in his seat with a silent groan. Now he would be Mr. Loser forever.

"I love aquariums. That sounds like a wonderful idea," Riku mused.

Lea then shot up straight with the silliest grin on his face like the dork he felt he was. Well, what were the odds? "O-okay. Want to go with me tomorrow?"

"That's fine with me. Text me the time?"

"Okay, I will." Lea wanted to talk more to the male on the other side of his phone, but the piercing blue eyes of a fellow coworker was starting to make him feel self-conscious. "I think I have to go back to work now. She's giving me the death glare," he murmured unsure.

A soft laugh from the receiver made Lea's brain melt like an ice cube on a summer's day. "Alright. See you tomorrow."

Lea smiled as he flipped his phone closed, but it soon dropped when he realized he would soon feel the wrath of the evil blonde she-witch. He reworded that phrase. She wasn't evil, she was just concerned about this newfound relationship he was growing with the engaged silver haired male.

"I'm going with him tomorrow..." Lea started carefully, not wanting to give away too many details.

"Oh really? Because according to the schedule, you work tomorrow," Naminé clarified with a raise of her eyebrow.

"Annnnnd since I know I'm working tomorrow, I was hoping I could take the day off and-"

"No," Naminé cut him off short, rubbing her rag aggressively along the outside of the display case. "You're not running off with a man with a fiancé!"

"I'm not running off, Naminé."

"Oh, so you're going to get your heart broken instead?" she huffed. Lea expected an angry look from her, but it was just full of concern. "I don't want to butt into your life. But, you're not the main person in his life, nor will you ever be."

"Nor do I try to be. I just want to be his friend," Lea explained calmly, putting his hands up in defense. "It's not a date." Even though Lea secretly wished it was. "I'm just trying to get his mind off of things."

"...Fine," Naminé finally caved and Lea whooped for joy even if it were in public, but his cheers were interrupted by, "Only on one condition."

Oh great.

"You take my shift on Christmas."

"Whaaaaaaaat?" Lea whined like a child, but the blonde female cut him off once more. "Wait, we're working on Christmas? Whaaaat?"

"It's something small to give up for someone so important to you, hmm?"

So Lea finally conceded defeat with a heavy sigh.

And Lea sighed again the next morning when he was having trouble picking out clothes for their totally-not-a-date, or as Riku had phrased it: an "outgoing". He was tempted to call his coworker for advice of what to wear that would be suitable for this not-a-date, but he was old enough to do this on his own even if Lea was too nervous to trust himself with his own decisions.

So the redhead went with the choice of a green woven sweater and dark jeans that were neither too baggy nor too tight. He thought the choice of clothing was reasonable enough, so on the way out, he threw on a light grey coat and leather gloves.

Before Lea made it out of the door, he grabbed his camera that hung around the hook. It wouldn't hurt if he took pictures inside.

When he picked up the silver haired male at his choice of destination, the coffee shop, Riku strapped himself in the passenger's seat and gave Lea a small smile.

Emerald eyes scanned Riku over briefly. He didn't know the full extent of his outfit, but he could see his dark grey jeans, spiffied up black shoes, and the addition of a grey plaid newspaper's boy hat sitting on his head.

"I like your hat," Lea complimented, but he liked how the hat looked on Riku rather than the item itself.

"Thanks."

The rest of the ride was in silence and Lea wasn't one to break it. When they exited the car and saw the outside of the building, Riku was the first to utter words.

"Wow," Riku said in awe as he exited the car. He was admiring the size of the building. It was practically the size of a huge white dome with the building's name, "Atlantica", wrapped around the front of the dome. The letters seemed to be filled with water and contained mechanical goldfish swimming inside.

Lea was currently fumbling with the settings of his camera, preparing it for future pictures. He tested it out on the front of the building, the shutter's click grabbing Riku's attention.

"Let's go inside," Lea suggested, motioning to the building with a tilt of his head. The shorter male gladly followed the taller one's lead, trailing closely to him.

The place wasn't crowded, but the main lobby was bubbly with voices. It would be more quiet when they got inside, or at least Lea had hoped. All he had to do was avoid the typical group of children that were on a field trip (as he assumed so since all of the children wore a shirt with the same color and logo), and avoid anybody in general. He would try to stay behind people and walk slowly; after all, they seemed to have all the time in the world.

When it came time for them to pay the cashier for admission, both of the males dutifully took out their wallets. Lea noticed Riku before the silverette noticed him, so he got his attention by poking him on the shoulder.

Riku dutifully glanced up curiously, saying something to him. Because of the noise level, his head leaned in towards the silverette to hear him better.

"I said I can pay," Riku repeated.

"No, I could," Lea argued, but the silver haired male looked questionably at him. With a soft sigh, knowing Riku didn't hear him clearly, he spoke right into his ear. "I said I'm going to pay for you."

"O-oh." Riku's head leaned back significantly. The redhead wondered why he had jerked back all of a sudden, but the small blush from the male told him all. If Lea had to guess, it would be because he was close to the silver haired male.

Maybe it reminded Riku of their one way kiss. It definitely reminded Lea of it.

"S-sorry," Lea apologized with a clear of his throat. He was hiding a blush of his own as he turned around and took this embarrassment as a sneaky opportunity to buy two admission tickets.

"Lea!" The redhead acted as if he couldn't hear Riku, pretending that the noises from surrounding people prevented him from hearing his own name. He pried Riku away from the booth by the arm, going through the turnstile with him.

"Hmm, did you say something?" Lea asked as he played dumb. As he saw the serious frown on Riku's face, he laughed lightly as he laid a hand on his shoulder. "Riku, it's fine."

"I want to pay you back," the silverette murmured with a bite of his lip. There was a coat drop off near the entrance to the actual aquarium, and as they walked there, Riku was fumbling with his wallet.

"You could pay me back by having a good time," Lea said, looking down to open up his jacket. As he finished with the task of undoing his coat, his eyes peeked upward to see Riku shrugging off his own heavy clothing. Lea now saw what was underneath the peacoat. Riku was donning a white collar shirt with a light blue cardigan over it.

He couldn't stop staring at the classy look Riku had pulled off with the simplest garments. Lea thought what would have gone through Riku's mind to make himself look more attractive than usual.

"If you're sure," Riku murmured pensively. "Hey, are you okay?"

As the attention was brought upon the redhead, Lea broke out of his trance. Riku was concerned about the long amount of time he had been staring into space when in reality, it was right at Riku. He suddenly lifted his camera to divert Riku's attention from him to the camera.

The silverette positively froze in his place, his eyes going as wide as a deer in headlights. "What are you doing?"

"Starting our fun with a couple of pictures."

"I'm not exactly photogenic," Riku rebutted.

Lea pulled down his camera and smiled as he walked over to the male. "Nonsense," he laughed, his hand brushing away at air. "I'll see for myself."

With a couple of more protests, Lea finally managed to sit the both of them relatively close on a bench just so they could both fit in the picture. He turned around the camera and although this wasn't the most professional way to take a picture, he was going to do it anyways. "Ready?"

"Sure?" Riku replied unsure.

The camera clicked and Lea went to inspect the picture right away, but Riku covered the screen with his hand.

"Don't look while I'm here. I don't want to see how bad I came out," Riku argued as he suddenly jumped out of his bench seat, heading for the sliding door. Lea marveled at his elusive behavior, chasing after the retreating male with a fast stride. He didn't expect Riku to stop short right after the door closed behind them, bumping right into his back.

Lea was about to apologize when Riku suddenly murmured, "Wow..."

There they were in a tunnel of oceanic beauty. The ground they walked on was solid, but the walls were clear plexiglass, beyond it swarms of sea creatures. They were practically surrounded by the ocean and it was as if they weren't looking at an aquarium, but were inside it themselves.

Riku stared and walked slowly to the eastern rounded wall, running his hand against it. "This is..."

The silver haired male was natural and almost graceful with his actions. The subtle run of his fingers and palm against the glass, his awed eyes, and his open slightly gaping lips made it seem like he was in this secret wonderland. Lea couldn't refrain from slowly lifting the camera to capture this child like beauty of the customer.

After the shutter of his camera, Riku turned towards Lea, causing the camera man to freeze. He expected to be lashed out against for taking a picture, but instead was graced with a beautiful, true smile from the silverette.

"It's so beautiful."

Lea's finger visibly shook as he took another image. "Absolutely breathtaking," the redhead commented, although he was speaking about something, or rather someone, entirely different.

Riku's smile had bested even the aqua paradise they were currently in.

* * *

**To gaara'sGurl101:** Yeah, it will not be anybody too bad. After all, it's harder for Lea to compete with someone who's better than him. Just kidding, no one is better than Lea!

**To AuroraNyumun: **Haha, yes, I completely know what you mean. I see them as both, potentially being only friends and also being lovers, but those best friends kind of lovers. Anyways, no matter who the fiancé is, I guarantee they won't be shipped as hard as Lea/Riku. However, once I write who the fiancé is, I understand if you wouldn't want to read anymore because many people have their own tastes. But again, trust me, this is primarily Lea/Riku, otherwise they wouldn't be so fluffy!

**Ignie: **Haha, you're too funny! I like you both! XD Hope that didn't sound too creepy! Yeah, it's totally not a date, but secretly a date, but still not a date, BUT STILL A DATE. Sssh, Riku doesn't know. Haha, that's totally how that dialogue went!


	7. Deep Affections

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: This is pretty much the other half of the chapter. Sorry for breaking it up again haha but it had to be done. **

* * *

Riku was curious in this small maze of an aquarium and the results of the photographs came out beautiful on Lea's camera screen.

The silverette traced his finger along the bronze animal descriptions that hung along underneath the glass, stopping to read each one with a smile. Lea thought the thirst for knowledge and the thriving curiosity the other had was endearing. Riku was even so caught up in this marine biology adventure that he didn't seem to mind the excessive photos Lea had been taking of him, the ocean life, and even both together.

Lea didn't even realize the capable danger of growing deeper affection for the other male during this trip. Like Riku was stuck in his oceanic wonderland, Lea was too deep in a pool of warm affection for the silverette.

The redhead's head swooned whenever he would hear the sweet call of his name. "Lea, check this out!" or "Lea, help me find this fish?" or even the rare "Lea, let's take a picture together."

Lea would savor those rare moments of Riku becoming comfortable with him, standing next to the male, or getting close enough so that their cheeks almost brushed together. Sometimes, Riku would even be adventurous enough to snag the camera from the redhead and take a picture of himself with the redhead.

Lea saw a small elevator coming up ahead and decided he would be the adventurous one this time. He grasped Riku's arm and pulled him into the compartment that looked like it could hold a large capacity.

"Wonder where this leads to," Riku wondered out loudly, his voice a lot more lively than usual.

"Guess we'll find out," Lea answered back, the elevator door closing. Without the use of a button, they automatically descended south. It appeared to be one of those elevators that were already programmed to go to specific areas.

Lea only became slightly apprehensive when the lighted area from the ocean disappeared above them. They seemed to be going away from the light and lowering straight into darkness.

As the machine stopped, the lights inside the small space became dimmer and dimmer. Lea's face focused on Riku's until it disappeared in the darkness. He noticed the door in front of him glowed similarly to a glow in the dark toy, and it opened.

Lea was about to instinctively pull out his cell phone for a use of light, but he saw a path of dim seashell and seaweed patterns on the floor beneath him, leading straight out of the elevator. It seemed to be a path of some sort and the redhead was about to follow the glowing pattern.

Lea was startled by a pair of gripping hands around his arm. "Lea?" he heard Riku's voice echo in the dark directly right next to him.

"I'm right here," Lea assured the male.

And as the redhead started to move forward, he didn't warn the clinging male he was taking some steps forward. "Ahh!" A head made direct contact against his back and almost caused him to fall face forward if it were not for the flailing pair of arms that held Lea from behind.

"I'm sorry!" Riku gasped out, holding more tightly. "I didn't know you were moving that soon."

Lea was currently chanting in his head to get a grip and calm down his beating heart. The silverette's arms were just wrapped so tightly around his waist.

"Lea?" Riku called worriedly after the redhead did not answer for moments.

"Yeah?" the redhead gulped out.

"Where are we?"

Lea did not know the answer to that question, so he decided to discover it on his own. He informed the silver haired male he was starting to move, but Riku only tripped on his own feet again, falling right into Lea's back once more.

"You should walk beside me so you won't trip," Lea suggested with a light shake of his head.

Riku had followed Lea's orders, but he added a second precaution that stunned the taller male. The redhead felt a hand softly grab his and an almost tiny voice whispered out, "I don't want to get separated."

Lea did not procure anything intelligible to say. It was hard to talk when your brain felt like honey and your skin was experiencing the most pleasant tingles. It was difficult to think that the two of them were not on a date. Lea still felt the warm hand of Riku's encased in his palm and he was glad for the darkness surrounding them. It was successfully hiding his blush.

But something brought Lea back to reality as one of Riku's fingers brushed against his, revealing something wrapped around his digit. Cool smooth metal brushed against Lea's skin, feeling evidence of a ring. It was a harsh reminder to Lea that the man was engaged.

This only brought down the older male's mood just by a little.

"No wonder why it's so dark down here. Look," he heard Riku murmur. As they walked further in the area, the glowing path they walked on branched off into several, leading to smaller dimly glowing aquarium tanks. Riku guided the both of them towards one of the tanks. The water inside was a dark blue nearing black and through the aid of dim light, Lea saw Riku's shadowy face nearing the glass to see what was inside. "These are deep sea animals. See?"

Lea didn't know what Riku was seeing; all he could see where bioluminescent seaweed with glow in the dark pebbles decorating the bottom of the tank. With a closer look, he finally saw something poke through the seaweed until it was fully visible. Its body was a translucent shining white, its insides seen and visible with a glow. Its lower jaw was longer than its upper jaw, sharp thin teeth lining the outside of its lips.

"Is that an angler fish?" Lea murmured, handling his camera with his free hand.

"Lea," Riku called softly. "Can you see me?"

"Huh?" Lea was slightly caught off guard by the sudden question. It was a shot from the dark, no pun intended. "Barely."

The silver haired male did not answer for a second. Lea thought that was all he wanted to know and they would be continuing this adventure in the deep, but a sigh in the darkness showed Riku was going to say more. "My fiancé. His name is Sora."

Lea thought it was strange how he did not know anything about this fiancé of Riku's, but he could already tell the silver haired male cared for him by how Riku uttered his name. It was fleeting, soft, and showed he had adored the man immensely.

"He makes friends so easily that I just fail to keep up sometimes. He's outgoing, but I'm obviously not as you can tell," he continued without a single beat.

Lea smiled at that. But that's what he liked about the silver haired male.

"I'm holding your hand not because I'm afraid of the dark, but because I'm afraid of being alone." In emphasis, Riku's hand squeezed the redhead's even tighter. Lea saw the movement of Riku's other hand slowly run across the glass. "I don't want to be alone like this little guy here."

The transition of Riku's sentences were all over the place. Lea still intently listened, however, waiting for the main point of bringing this up.

"We haven't been able to spend time together as frequently. Work gets in the way for the both of us and when we do have time, there's the matter of Sora's friends," Riku continued.

"What did they do?" Lea couldn't prevent himself from asking.

"It's so stupid," Riku sighed, not fully answering the question that had been given to him. "I want to be with him alone. Like the old days, when we were just best friends. Only now, as...lovers. With no friends around."

The taller male knew there were missing components of the story. But he wasn't one to force answers; Lea just was grateful he was being shared some information. "Why don't you just ask him," Lea suggested.

Lea found it ironic that those were the exact words Naminé had told him when he was trying to find out Riku's name. Deja vu.

"Isn't that selfish of me to pull him away from his friends?" Riku questioned softly.

"Sometimes, it's good to be selfish. So, you should ask him to come to the coffee shop with you, tomorrow."

It felt odd to help Riku. Lea felt like his own obstacle and at the same time, a good friend. He was preventing the chance of possibly being together with the silverette, but felt good in doing so. After all, Lea was willing to suffer some heartbreak just for Riku to be happy.

"What if it doesn't work?" Riku contemplates.

"Trust me, it'll work. He'd be stupid to not realize you want to be with him. He'd be even stupider if he said no," Lea added with a gentle tone.

What Lea had said was probably an equivalent of indirectly saying, "He'd be stupid because you're a really great guy and I like you a lot". But he wouldn't EVER say those words out loud.

Lea's face fell as he felt Riku's hand slip away from his slowly. He stood still and held his breath for what seemed like the longest time as panic swept through him like a tidal wave. Did Riku intelligently figure out the meaning behind his words?

Then Lea felt two arms wrap around his neck and a warm body press close to his.

Oh, that felt nice. That felt really nice.

"Thank you. I really needed this," he heard Riku's voice whisper. Relief washed over the redhead, glad he didn't cause any more possible trouble for Riku. The last thing his customer needed was this hopeless barista striving for his affection.

"You're a great guy, Lea," Riku sighed as his eyes closed shut.

As Riku hugged him more tightly, Lea didn't stop himself from hugging back, even if his heart was beating like a bass drum in his ears.

* * *

**To AuroraNyumun: **Aha that's good, but yes, it is Sora. I didn't want to reveal it last chapter because I didn't get there yet, and it would have been a spoiler. I was VERY VERY tempted to make it someone completely weird. I tend to like ships that don't even exist (crack ships), some popular ships (really only SoRiku because I grew bored of AkuRoku. I can't with those two. I ship Roxas and Xion more than that now, which is odd since this is a straight couple) and unpopular ships (such as Axel/Lea and Riku). Yeah, it was a problem breaking this into two parts. Maybe I'm making it seem longer, but I was on a writing streak. :D

**To Ignie: **Marriage? Yes, it must happen! But if it's a marriage, Riku can't deny it's not a marriage! I mean, he'll be in a dress and everything! Haha just kidding. I was tempted to make it someone completely crazy though. I should have, but I already planned this all the way from the beginning. Going a different way would have went against my ideas, but there were definitely options.

**To gaara'sGurl101: **Yes, Lea and Riku get closer the more they hang out. It's bound to happen eventually! Oh those cuties...they're so going to fall in love.


	8. Keeping Distance

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: This summer has just been too busy. ;-; Getting ready for third year of college and stuff, so that explains it.**

* * *

The warmth from Riku's hug yesterday never left Lea, even in the morning.

He brought his camera to work and decided during his break, he would look at the images he had taken during their aquarium "non-date" since he wasn't able to last night. Riku had not arrived at the usual time, so Lea thought it was a good opportunity to scroll through the pictures.

A nosy Naminé peeked over his shoulder and smiled despite that she disapproved of their outgoing yesterday. "He looks so happy. It's totally worth working on Christmas, hmm?"

The redhead wrinkled his nose, mildly disgusted at the idea of working on a holiday. "Yeah, it is. We had a lot of fun and he talked to me about his fiancé. He's coming today with Riku."

"That's good," Naminé chirped, obviously gleeful at the mention of Riku's fiancé.

Then Lea had stopped by the last picture on the screen, the one Riku refused to allow Lea to look at. It was the first picture they took together. There the silverette's cheeks were a bright pink, embarrassed for some reason.

"Lea." He was expecting to hear some complaint about the image, something following the lines of him making Riku blush and that it was wrong to do so. His eyes instead followed the sound of a ringing bell coming from the door. His silver haired customer walked in and close to him was a smiling brunette.

There were two thoughts that came to Lea's mind. One, that must have been Riku's fiancé. And two, if that was the fiancé, he was so damn short, it was ridiculous.

Lea put away his camera, placing it in a cabinet right beneath the register. He smiled as Riku had walked over to him. "So this must be Sora," Lea said as exuberantly as he could.

"Yeah. Sora, this is Lea," Riku introduced the two of them.

The redhead had been expecting small talk, but he was severely wrong. "Hi, I'm Sora!" the brunette introduced himself quite excitedly and Lea was almost taken aback when the shorter male reached across the counter, took his hand, and shook it. "It's nice to meet you. How do you know Riku?"

The question came in unexpectedly, but Lea soon recovered from his dumbfounded state. "I, he's..."

The question sounded like an interrogation that any jealous boyfriend or lover would ask. However, Lea saw no signs of suspicion. Maybe it would be fun to make the little guy jealous.

"Oh, Riku?" Lea started to answer. He gave Sora a lopsided smile as his eyes shifted over to Riku with a sly look to them. "Oh, he's just my _favorite_ customer."

The purposeful emphasis Lea put on the word successfully made Riku blush and look to the ground. That would sure ring some alarm or warning in Sora's brain that there was this random barista trying to hit on his man. But, Sora did nothing but exuberantly smile, and he laughed heartily. "I know! He's a great guy, isn't he?"

Lea's smile slowly dropped. When he did not have any words to say, the blonde barista saved the silence just in time by saying, "Aww, isn't that sweet? You're lucky to have each other. I'll get your orders in a second, just sit down."

Sora giggled with a scratch on the back of his head while Riku just watched indifferently, his blush never leaving his face. The two left to sit across from one another at a different table than what Riku usually sat at.

Lea knew Naminé's earlier comment was to discourage him from liking Riku. "He's cute," the blonde commented with a knowing smirk.

"He's just a stupid twerp," Lea growled out underneath his breath, surprised that he sounded so aggressive.

"Sounds like you're jealous," Naminé whispered with a smile. The redhead gladly ignored that comment.

Lea may have not directly said he was interested in Riku, but the tone of his words definitely suggested it. It was enough of an emphasis for someone to notice that the redhead liked Sora's lover. The longing stare and cunning smile he had given Riku right afterward was just the screaming cherry on top.

But Sora seemed to not pay mind to it all all. It was not that he was confident that Riku wouldn't be stolen from him. It seemed like Sora actually didn't damn well notice that Lea was so obviously FLIRTING with his fiancé.

Lea immediately contrasted Sora to himself. The redhead would have known from a mile away if some guy was trying to pick up his lover. His green eyes stared at the table in mid-thought where the couple were sitting.

The two of them were having what had looked like a happy conversation that was mainly one sided. Lea now knew that Riku's description of Sora was spot on; he was definitely more outgoing and could practically carry a conversation by himself. The redhead could hear the other's laughter and bubbly talking all the way from his counter.

Meanwhile, Lea examined as Riku merely smiled adoringly at the male across from him. He definitely looked happier than most days he was here sipping his cold latte. It made Lea jealous that this young brown haired male made Riku smile when the redhead was doing the exact same yesterday.

"Lea, you're glaring at that boy like he killed your goldfish," Naminé commented as she strolled by the counter with two drinks in his hand. Lea blinked, unaware of the glare he had been directing at Sora for the past few minutes. "What's wrong Grumpy?"

"He just looks so happy with that guy," the redhead sighed, resting his chin against the flat of his palm.

"As he should be. Now stop glaring," Naminé chided with a raise of her eyebrow, walking off to give the couple their drinks.

Lea grumbled with a low breath, mocking the girl's words. He continued to stare at the two lovebirds, the cause of the silver haired male's smile irking him. It was irritating how someone that made Riku upset whenever he walked into the café could suddenly make him grin.

Lea then was about to experience something he didn't want to see. His eyes caught Riku's hand sliding across the table to lovingly hold his fiancé's. He couldn't look away, even if it infuriated him in the inside, as the silverette leaned across the table in an attempt to kiss the brunette.

Lea was half relieved, half dumbfounded as Sora had leaned back significantly in embarrassed shock, causing his chair to tip backward and him to fall to the ground. The redhead didn't have it in him to laugh as Sora scrambled up in humiliation with a blush on his face. Lea continued to watch as the scene unfolded before his eyes: Riku trying to help the short brown haired male to his feet with concern lining his features and Sora shaking his head and running off to the restroom, acting very much like an embarrassed teenage girl.

A disgusting look passed Lea's face as he watched. He could have puked from the cuteness.

As Riku was standing up to fix the chair, Lea hoisted himself over the counter ungracefully and jogged over to the silverette. "I got it, don't worry," Lea assured with a wink. He bent just in time to stand the chair right back on its legs.

"Thanks," Riku sighed out, sitting back down. Lea looked at the counter to ensure he had a couple of minutes' worth of time and proceeded to sit across from the engaged male. "Sorry about the commotion."

"No problem. You just embarrassed yourself publicly, no big deal," Lea said with a shrug and a playful smile. He stared as the silver haired male's forehead made contact with the clear table, burying his face into his crossed forearms. "It wasn't that bad, really. I was joking."

When Riku glanced back up, he looked upset.

"Riku, I was just poking fun. It really wasn't bad at all," Lea quickly explained. His hands rested on the table, twitching with the need to slide across the table and hold the other male's paler ones.

"No, it's not that. I know he didn't mean to upset me, but..." Riku started with a shake of his head.

Eyelids drooped halfway to show hazy emerald orbs. Lea didn't need Riku to explain the rest because he understood. "He didn't let you kiss him," Lea completed.

"It's stupid, isn't it."

Lea watched as the silverette looked down at the table with weary depression. It may have been a silly reason in Riku's eyes, but it was something different in Lea's. The redhead understood; the weight of them not spending time together only for his fiancé to show rejection towards Riku the next moment was getting to be too much.

Riku just missed Sora and felt alone, and that was enough of a reason to be upset from Lea's point of view. The redhead would kiss Riku ten times over just so he wouldn't feel so alone...

"I would have kissed you in an instant," Lea murmured without thinking.

The jerk of Riku's head broke Lea out of his hazy stare. Why was the silverette staring at him so strangely?

"Lea? Do you really mean that?"

"Mean...what?" Lea asked back hesitantly. Then his jaw slightly dropped as Riku's face flushed.

"What you said about k-kissing me," Riku meekly answered.

From this point forward, Lea promised himself to be extra careful when speaking to the silver haired male. Just now, he just blurted something that was supposed be kept inside his head. He was thankful for Sora's sudden return from the restroom so he wouldn't cause any more trouble.

"Sorry, was keeping your seat warm," Lea laughed, patting the seat for emphasis as he wasted no time in shooting right out of the seat. Riku looked down just as quick, successfully hiding his growing blush.

"Oh, that's okay!" Sora laughed, taking his seat across from Riku. He still seemed embarrassed from before.

"So, you guys doing anything romantic on Christmas? It's coming up," Lea nervously asked for small talk. He wasn't really listening as Sora began to explain that they hadn't planned on anything because Lea was too busy wondering when Riku would finally look up. "There's this nice romantic restaurant that should be opened on Christmas. You should go there," Lea suggested.

"That sounds great. Want to go Riku?"

Lea left the two at that point, awkwardly mentioning he should go back to work even if there were no customers on the line just yet. He opened the cash register to busy himself with a boring task, such as organizing the coins in their appropriate places since he always failed to do so.

The redhead only hoped that mentioning the restaurant would shift Riku's attention back to his fiancé. Lea only wanted the silver haired male to be happy and if the way to do so was to rekindle their relationship, then he was glad that he suggested a Christmas date for the two.

Lea saw that Riku's head finally lifted up and he engaged once again in his conversation with Sora. Maybe they were now discussing their upcoming date that Lea created on the spot.

But the redhead couldn't help notice that Riku's eyes kept meeting his briefly multiple times. Lea did his best to avoid contact for his sake...

And for Riku's.

* * *

**To gaara'sGurl101:** What Lea's getting into is probably not the wisest decision, but he can't help himself. I see somebody really likes angry make up sex haha xD

**To waddlekikwi:** Aww thanks. :3 Yes, Sora does need to leave, but it's not going to be so easy. After all, Riku's engaged to him.

**To Ignie: **Yeah, I can see it in all ways with them (one sided romance, bromance, romance, or even hatred believe it or not...). But they're not as important as Lea and Riku! They're just dorks meant to be. If Lea and Riku were the ones engaged, then they would just be silly dorks all the time, and it'd be the cutest thing ever.

**To AuroraNyumun:** I enjoyed writing the scene, and GOD they're so cute. It'll make more sense in the next chapter why Sora is doing this. Yeah, I know what you mean. Before DDD, I actually shipped AkuRiku due to some RPs I used to do. Then I shipped them harder (and when Lea came in, then Lea/Riku too!) after DDD. DiZ and...Axel? What...WHAT? I don't even have words anymore! How is that...a thing? XD


	9. Unhappy Holidays

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts! I also don't own Frank Sinatra's "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas". I love the way he sings though.

**A.N.: I guess I can't wait for Christmas or something, since I'm writing about it. Weiiiird. Merry Christmas everybody. (Too early for that, right? Haha)**

* * *

A couple of weeks rolled by before it was finally Christmas and Lea was the equivalent of Ebenezer Scrooge.

Even though he accepted his fate, Lea still didn't enjoy working on Christmas. He glanced around the café, no more than two couples sitting at tables drinking their coffees now so they can go out later. The only positive side was he could close earlier today...

Only to go back to his home where he would be spending Christmas by himself. Lea sighed, counting off his options with the fingers on his hand. Naminé was likely spending Christmas with her family. He also discovered this past week that his own mother and father were going on a trip for their honeymoon, which fell along the week of Christmas. At least he was going to receive presents through the mail.

It was depressing to say the least. Lea's mind trailed to more positive thoughts. At least Riku was going to finally be with Sora alone on this romantic holiday!

But this only reminded Lea that he was even more alone.

"Man, I really need to get outside," Lea muttered to himself. He glanced at the clock, deciding to close down in less than an hour's worth of time. He would leave at five o' clock, take half an hour to close up and clean since he didn't have help, and that would leave him some time to stroll through town.

Even if he would be alone, it would still be healthy to get outside.

By six o' clock, it was already becoming dark. This time, Lea prepared himself with a sweater underneath his jacket that actually had a hood to protect his ears from the cold. He shoved his gloved hands inside his pockets and walked past his parked car to explore his small town.

Most of the shops were closed on the holidays. The inside of the small buildings were completely black with capitalized signs hung on the doors that said "CLOSED". Lea strolled along this empty street, save for some cars that were parked and streetlights that were decorated with Christmas lights and wreaths.

Lea even spotted the occasional couple that walked by, happily smiling at each other as if there were no troubles in the world. He sighed, wishing he was holding someone's hand in this brisk cold. If it was anybody's hand, he wished it would be Riku's.

Riku. Lea wondered how the silver haired male was doing. The days following up to Christmas, he hadn't been making the occasional stop at the coffee shop. Lea blamed Riku's disappearance on himself. If he hadn't kept his mouth shut that day, then he wouldn't have discouraged the shorter male from coming.

Lea stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, glancing at the time on his phone. It was probable that Riku was dining at the restaurant now. "Maybe I could...?"

The great weight of a decision befell the redhead. It wasn't in his place to visit the male during his date, but maybe Lea could see how content Riku was. It would make him enjoy Christmas at least a little if he saw a smile on Riku's face. Lea finally decided he would only sneak a peek from the outside of the restaurant. This way, he wouldn't interrupt their date or make himself known.

Eventually, as he walked to the outside of the restaurant, Lea felt a small, cold drop on his cheek. He looked up only to discover the first flakes of snow fall from the sky.

"I guess it's a white Christmas. How romantic for them," Lea softly sighed, tucking his chin into the warmth of his jacket collar. This looked like it was going to be the perfect weather to cuddle up near the fireplace right after dinner. Lea wondered vaguely if Riku was the type of guy to do that and as a result, he blushed.

Yeah, Riku seemed like the type to like innocent gestures like that. The customer would most likely get embarrassed similar to himself. They would just lay on the couch with Riku cuddled into his chest or even vice versa, enjoying each other's company in the silence.

Lea shook these silly imaginations from his head. He shouldn't be thinking like that. See, there Riku was sitting at a seat that the redhead could see through the window...

By himself?

Lea denied the truth that was sitting right in front of him. Riku wasn't by himself, right? Sora was just taking a short bathroom break while the silverette was pouring himself some bottled drink into a wine glass...

Right?

Dread swept through Lea as he stood there for a couple of minutes and there was no sign of Sora. He stared and stared as time rolled by, the snow falling steadily into the ground. Riku's glass was now one fourth full due to several sips and he was now pouring some more into his glass.

As Riku's form hunched and his head buried into his hand, Lea strode into the restaurant on impulse. The soft, slow song of "Have Yourself a Merry Christmas" played as background noise. The clinks of plates and quiet chatter filled the restaurant.

"Sir, table for...?" a waitress said as she tended to him.

"A table is already reserved for me. I'm with someone here," Lea lied, hoping that would pass as an explanation.

"And the party's name...?"

"...Riku," he hesitated giving as an answer. Lea patiently waited, hoping that Riku made a reservation here under his name. Luckily for Lea, Riku did use his name.

"Ah, yes, here it is. Right this way," she chimed, her fingertip stopping against a list of names. She led Lea to the table he had seen through the window, secluded in the corner with only the silverette. The waitress took her leave presumably to continue her job. Lea breathed before finally settling in the seat across from Riku. He coughed to get the other's attention, causing Riku to lift his head up slowly.

"Oh, heyyy," Riku dragged out with a smile, something so drastically different from what Lea had seen.

"How are you doing?" Lea asked as he scanned over Riku's expression. His cheeks were lightly tinted pink and he noted the glassy look to his cyan eyes.

The silverette somehow found something hilarious with Lea's question and burst out in laughter. Lea raised a concerned eyebrow as he grabbed for the bottle next to Riku's wine glass. "I'm just here waiting...you know. For my date."

"How long have you been waiting?" Lea asked as he inspected the contents on the bottle. His eyes moved back and forth as he read.

"Oh, I don't know..." Riku drawled in a bored tone, slumping slowly in his seat. "Maybe an hour or so." He reached for the bottle in Lea's hand even if the wine glass was still somewhat full and took a long sip.

"Riku, I don't think you should drink any more rum," Lea said as he yanked the bottle straight from Riku's mouth. The bottle left the silverette's lips with an audible pop. "Are you even old enough?"

"But, it's banana flavored," he whined softly with a pout, reaching for the next best thing, his wine glass. "I'm nineteen, but being engaged makes me practically twenty one," he argued unintelligibly, lifting the glass to his lips.

"I think you're drunk AND underaged," the redhead sighed, grabbing for Riku's glass, setting it on the table. He dragged him up with little trouble. "I'm taking you home."

"But there's no one to go home to," Riku continued whining, pounding his fist lightly into Lea's shoulder. "Please, take me with you."

Lea took the light punches only becoming more concerned with this situation. Lea stared into Riku's begging teal eyes. This was a difficult predicament. He couldn't just leave Riku by himself to drink in depression. Where would he go once he finished his business here? He didn't know, however, if he was capable enough to take care of the silverette in his state.

Well...he had to try. Lea just had to hope that Riku wasn't one of those crazy, stupid drunks.

"Fine," Lea conceded. He put an arm around Riku's waist as a precaution in case he fell over. "Let's go."

* * *

**To gaara'sGurl101: **I see what you mean. In a way, Naminé is making Riku more depressed. Also it looks like she and Riku are similar in their morals. The only difference between them is that Lea is more likely to change Riku's mind than Naminé's. Who could resist that cutie?

**To AuroraNyumun: **Sora's so ruuuude, how dare he. Riku should just marry Lea instead. He would be a lot happier that way, but damn, is it hard to break away from your first love. And please send me an example of that in a PM, I am so curious! DiZ and Axel, I'm so...confused! I demand evidence! Haha, no I definitely believe you. But, I still want to see this craziness!

**To Ignie: **Haha! Sora is a...-whisper- a total douche. I agree with Lea kissing the Riku, because he would be so much better at kissing the Riku. So, hah, screw you Sora! -lifts up middle fingers- I mean...you still have a place in my heart Sora. Xd


	10. Christmas Traditions

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: So I finally have two Hermit crabs, one named Krabby Patty and the other Shelldon. They're darlings. They don't pinch me at all. Haha. Can't wait to get a tank and sand substrate for them. Playing a bit of Pokemon X too, so if you play that too...you could...I don't know...send me a PM.**

* * *

Lea was smart to hold Riku closely to him. The male was dizzily stumbling and bumping against him as they walked inside the house.

Lea guided the male onto his couch where the male quickly laid down on his back. He looked at the silverette for a good moment, trying to judge on what he should do next. "Do you, do you feel alright?" Lea asked, unsure of how to take care of a person who had one too many drinks.

"No, I'm...just so thirsty," Riku yawned out.

"I'll get you some water," Lea offered. He watched as the silver haired male slowly sunk into the couch comfortably as if he were at home. Lea sighed out as he went into the kitchen to wash a medium glass cup. Riku seemed to be a calm drunk and Lea was grateful for that. As long as he was comfortable on that couch, the redhead shouldn't worry too much. He filled the glass with ice cubes he had popped out from the tray and poured some water from the fridge.

He eyed a bucket that was casually sitting on the floor and grabbed that as well. It was only a safety precaution in case of a "messy" emergency. Riku didn't seem to be sick, but Lea wasn't fond of taking a chance with his carpet getting thrown up on.

When he walked back into the living room, he set the glass on the nearest table and the bucket right next to it. Lea looked at Riku only to find him with his eyes closed. His leg was hanging off the edge of the couch and his arm was thrown over his eyes as a shield from the light.

"Riku?" he called, but got no answer in response. Lea's lips twisted into a smile and he scratched the back of his head. "You fell asleep already."

Getting no response, Lea chuckled. He kneeled on the ground for a closer inspection of Riku's face. Silver eyelashes not fluttering in the slightest and an open pair of lips releasing whistling breaths showed he was definitely asleep. Lea shook his head, lightly laughing, deciding the most he can do to help was to at least make the male more comfortable.

After all, Riku still had his clothes on. Lea reached to undo Riku's pinstriped tie, letting it hang loosely about his neck. He unbuttoned the matching vest fully and then the first few buttons of his black button up shirt to give his neck a breather. Lea's hands carefully untucked the undershirt, pulling it slowly out of Riku's pants. He hesitated in going lower, but that belt of his really looked a little too tight for comfort...

"Lea, are you taking off my clothes?" Riku murmured with a big smile on his face. The redhead jumped from Riku suddenly talking, falling backwards onto his bum. "Trying to take advantage of me in my sleep, huh?"

"J-just making some things loose for you. They looked uncomfortable," Lea stammered with a nervous quivering line for a mouth.

"Then can you get that belt of mine? I can't right now," Riku lazily said, his hand scratching absentmindedly at his stomach. He pulled weakly at his shirt, giving a short huff in aggravation. His one eye peeked open at Lea, adding, "And this shirt, too, please." Lea gulped, overwhelmed by warmth at the tasks. Undo Riku's belt AND shirt? Was he going to die tonight from utter embarrassment?

His hands trembled as he unbuttoned Riku's shirt. He was regretting that he started with the buttons because now he was beginning to see that chiseled skin once more. Lea tried to busy his eyes by staring at Riku's face, but the shorter male was just smiling at him widely, making Lea instantly look away. It was probably the alcohol that was causing the man to be unusually giddy.

"This looks so perverted," Riku giggled as Lea's hands traveled to his belt. "Be gentle with me."

"Riku, please try to be serious," Lea hissed out with a dark blush staining his features. He was looking at his working hands as he successfully slid Riku's belt off. The silver haired male sighed in relief as he scratched his naked abdomen, shooting a smile at Lea.

"Thanks. Want to lay on the couch with me, Lea?" Riku offered. It was an innocent question, but it sounded dirty in Lea's ears. It was because the silverette was making him so nervous by making perverted innuendos that he thought that way.

"I'm going to get the fireplace working," Lea said to avoid that question. He quickly got up to his feet and took and armful of logs next to the fireplace. He placed several sizes of wood inside along with some scrap paper, reaching for a box of matches.

"Lea, are you spending Christmas by yourself?" Riku suddenly asked.

The question stopped Lea's hand in place. His lips slowly formed a small frown as he grabbed the small box. "Yeah. I am. Everybody is busy."

"It sucks. Being alone," Riku whispered, slowly sitting up. Lea turned his head towards the male who was now staring at the hands on his lap. "On a day where people are supposed to be together."

"Riku..."

"He didn't come," Riku stated normally, but as he looked up, his eyes were teary. "He didn't come, Lea. It hurts, so much."

Lea was listening to this as he was lighting up a match. He lit it aggressively as he heard the sadness leaking in Riku's voice. All the male experienced was depression and being alone. The male deserved better than that.

"This is my fault," Riku muttered. Lea knew why this was making him so aggravated. Riku was so blindly in love that he didn't see the truth lying in front of him. His fiancé wasn't even there for him when Riku needed him.

"Why are you even taking the blame? This is his fault," Lea argued as he threw the match inside the pile, seeing it slowly catch fire.

"How can you blame someone who doesn't even know what he's doing?" Riku rhetorically questioned with a soft tone. Lea turned around, confused by the other's words. "You can't be mad at someone who's innocently clueless. After all, it's my fault for not telling him..."

Lea started to stab at the wood with a prong. He couldn't believe what he was hearing right now.

"Lea, I can't be mad at him. He's very important to me," Riku slurred, running his hand over where his heart was. "He was my first friend, my first best friend, my first boyfriend, and now my fiancé. I'm pretty sure that's important," Riku sighed. "It's my fault."

Lea got up, slamming the prong onto the ground. He whipped around and looked at Riku with determination in his eyes. "I'm not going to just sit here and hear you blame yourself for this."

"Lea?"

"No, it's not your fault, okay? Why do you have to suffer through this? Why do you even bother dealing with this good for nothing...He's, he's just too clueless for you. You deserve better. You deserve to be happy. Sometimes, I wish you weren't engaged so I could show you that happiness," Lea cut off, his feet slowly closing the distance between the both of them. He felt Riku's hazy eyes on him the entire time. The redhead sat boldly next to the other male, grabbing his shoulders. "Got it memorized?"

This time, Riku did not laugh at Lea's utterance of that silly catchphrase. He sat still, inspecting Lea with curious eyes. "That was really deep," he noted lowly.

The redhead slowly let go of Riku's shoulders. The silverette continued, "No, that's like the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me. I could kiss you for that," Riku continued.

Lea blew out the breath he had been holding. The inside of his mouth dried up like a raisin as Riku mentioned kissing him. What he had just said made him silent from disbelief. "Riku, forget what I said. That was wrong of me to say," Lea said, trying to reverse this. Lea knew he should have never opened his mouth. He was screwing everything up.

"But, I can't. I kind of want to kiss you for being so caring," Riku sighed.

Did the other male seriously just say that? Lea's heart was melting and combusting all at once. It would soon burst right out of his chest if Riku kept this up.

"Oh, wow," Riku giggled as he stared at the ceiling. "Is that a mistletoe?"

"Huh?" Lea's eyes followed where Riku's eyes stared. He was seriously going to die right where he was sitting.

"Say, it's not wrong in any way if we follow Christmas tradition, right?" Riku slowly said with a small blush. "I mean, we're only following the rules. It's not like we want to do this, right?"

Lea followed Riku's drunken talk. Inside, he knew he disagreed with this completely and that this made no sense whatsoever. This was territory he shouldn't be venturing into.

"We should totally kiss...or something. For Christmas spirit," Riku further explained with a smile.

Lea was reluctant to disagree, his desires bubbling in his chest. This would be so very wrong if he kissed Riku. Did Riku consciously know what he was saying or doing?

"I might miss and kiss your nose," Riku slurred with a smile. His eyes closed and his lips pouted only slightly.

Lea stared as Riku's face leaned in closer and closer. He was frozen to his spot on the couch, his eyes expanding as he felt the other's hot breath coat his lips. Lea's eyes darted from Riku's nearing lips to the darkening blush on his pale features. It would be just an innocent kiss, right? Riku didn't seem to be taking this so seriously, so this wasn't...intimate.

With a huge gulp, Lea closed his eyes and leaned in, throwing away the last of his rationality.

* * *

**Cliffhanger? :D -gets shot in the head- I deserved that. ;-;**

**To Ignie: **Sora, keep doing bad things so Lea can do the good things to the Riku! Lea, grab the Riku and run off to the sunset with him! I'm glad you like drunky Riku. :3

**To AuroraNyumun: **AHAH, cut off his finger? Well, might as well cut all of his fingers so he can't wear the ring on another! -hands you a pair of scissors- I can't wait to see that proof. Going to see now!

**To gaara'sGurl101: **Only good can come Lea's way, hehe. -wink wink nudge nudge-


	11. Keeping Morals

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: So one of my hermit crabs murdered the other OUT OF NOWHERE. They completely got along for a couple of weeks and suddenly, BAM! It happened while I was sleeping too...makes no sense. What a bully...**

* * *

Lea leaned in more and more until he finally felt something against his mouth. These were Riku's lips, just as he remembered from the first time he kissed him.

They were so soft and gentle that he just stood still for a second, just basking in the feeling of their lips together. Even without moving, it felt warm and as Riku started to press more forcefully against him to evoke a response, it felt so hot and right.

It was different than last time where they were unresponsive. This time, Riku's lips were moving. Lea blushed harder than ever when he felt the male's arms loop around his neck. A chill ran down his spine as he two pairs of fingers grabbed and pushed his head forward.

Oh, that felt _really_ good. So good that Lea let a moan slip out.

Lea could tell Riku was somewhat confident with his actions. The likely culprit was the alcohol. The slip of Riku's tongue into his mouth made him shudder involuntarily. Lea could feel a pressing force against him and he gave in to it, laying flat against the couch. The warmth of Riku's body was fully against him, laying completely on top of him.

Lea could feel Riku's tongue delve deeper, exploring his orifice. The redhead moaned again as their tongues made contact, moving against the male without realizing. He finally noticed the friction of Riku's body against his own. His initial jerk spurred a reaction from the man on top of him, causing him to grind fully against Lea.

Then, Lea noticed something else. His temperature was rising high, there was this discomfort in his jeans, and he was downright making shameful noises.

"R-Riku," Lea mumbled onto Riku's mouth. They were shut once more as dominating lips pressed onto his. He groaned in response, his hands pushing on the male's shoulders to separate momentarily.

"What's wrong Lea?" Riku asked, clearly out of breath.

"I-I have a problem, so we should, uh, stop," Lea explained with a nervous jittery stare.

"A problem?" Riku repeated as he closed the distance between them by moving his leg in between Lea's thighs. "What kind of- oh. I see." Lea swallowed nervously as Riku's eyes trailed down his body. As he looked away, the younger male chuckled, bringing his face closely to the redhead. "Somebody's arooooused," he teased lowly.

Lea was already burying his red face into his hands. He ashamedly got turned on from what was supposed to be an innocent lock of lips. "I'm sorry, you must think I'm trying to get into your pants, but I'm-"

"Don't be sorry," Riku cut off as he guided Lea's hands from his face to his lap. Lea's chin got lifted by a pair of fingers and his eyes connected with Riku's smiling ones. "It's a normal reaction."

Before a protest escaped, Riku shut Lea's lips with his own. "It's okay if you're turned on. I am too," he slurred with a giggle.

"Riku, that's nothing to laugh about," Lea managed to cough out through his speechlessness. "That's a sign we should stop."

"But, doesn't that make you super uncomfortable?" Riku asked as he pointed in between the redhead's legs. His head tilted like a curious child's, though realistically he already knew the answer. "I can help you with that," Riku trailed off with a smile. Lea gulped down a huge knot in his throat. The kind of help Riku was offering made the redhead anxious. He was starting to gain some of his rationality back since he wasn't preoccupied with Riku's lips now.

"Riku, that's not a good idea to do when you're drunk. You might not even, well, remember."

The silver haired male looked into Lea's eyes, guilt clear in them. "I'm so stupid," he laughed as he looked at his lap, the drunken slur no longer giving his speech an impediment. "Pretending to be drunk just so I can get what I want."

The words entered Lea's ears. It took a while for his mind to decipher them which explained the blank stare he had given Riku. Then all at once, realization hit him. "You're not drunk?" Lea asked astonished.

"Well, I am, but I'm totally aware of what I'm doing," Riku smiled worriedly. "I just thought that acting more drunk than I already was would convince you for something to happen between us because you thought I would forget about it."

"Wait, you thought I would think this would be okay if I thought you forgot about it? So we could pretend none of this happened while getting something we both wanted?" Lea asked with confusion, scratching his forehead.

"Exactly."

"Riku, that would be the exact reason why I wouldn't go further. I'm not going to do this because it would screw up what you have," the redhead said with a shake of his head.

"Why are you such a good person," Riku sighed, simply just laying back on top of Lea. His head found a comfortable spot on the other's chest and his lips formed a small smile. "But, this is wrong, isn't it. I know I can't do this with you." Riku laughed dryly, finding some humor in his own misery. "Why is it when someone does the right thing, I get hurt in the end?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Sora's off somewhere forgetting about our date to do some good for the world," Riku sighed. "He works for charity groups from the good of his heart, and one probably fell on Christmas. And here I am being selfish of wanting to spend time with him when he's being so selfless."

"Despite that he's doing something good, I think he should have been here with you," Lea muttered.

"Lea, you're such a great guy," Riku whispered, his fingers trailing up the redhead's chest. "I could feel your heartbeat."

It wasn't a surprise that Riku could feel the thumping of Lea's heart against his ribcage. It was quickly beating hard with the power of a bass drum. That was the second time Riku called Lea a 'great guy'.

"It feels so...alive. It's so strong. I like you so much," Riku rambled.

At first, the last of Riku's words did not register in Lea's brain. The redhead only assumed mindless, yet meaningful rambling chatter coming from the other's mouth. Lea then sputtered nonsensical words as it finally registered and he froze. He was now rationally composed, knowing those words should have never left Riku's lips.

"Riku?" Lea gulped out, using some strength to lean up only slightly. He looked down to see a pair of resting eyelids.

"Lea. There's an attraction between us, isn't there? Ever since the aquarium, I felt it. When I hugged you and you said those wonderful things, I felt something," Riku softly admitted, his eyes lifting to meet Lea's. "I like you, Lea."

In the beginning, Lea would have admitted the same. But the redhead was concerned about the outcome now. He had to handle this logically, with his best concerns in Riku.

"Riku, you shouldn't like me." Lea leaned up and forced Riku up. The silverette stared at Lea with confusion as the redhead stood on his feet. "Please, fix your shirt and belt."

"Why?" Riku questioned, but followed his instructions, his hands working on his clothing.

"Because, you need to get out of here," Lea advised with a deep swallow.

"What?"

"Come." Lea seized Riku by the arm, hoisting him up to his feet. He dragged him to his front door, peeking outside to see it snowing lightly on this Christmas evening.

"Are you kicking me out?" Riku asked with solemn eyes. Those eyes clearly expressed he didn't want to leave and Lea knew this. But, staying with Riku any longer could cause them to do something they would regret. And Lea would now stop this to protect Riku's relationship.

"You have to. I'm doing this for you," Lea said as he handed Riku an umbrella. His gaze was downcast to avoid Riku's lonely stare as he opened his front door. A chill ran through the house with some light snow.

"Lea, please don't- I don't want to be alone." Lea gulped as he heard Riku's voice tremble. This was getting more difficult to do, but a just had to.

"This is best for you," Lea explained firmly, staring at Riku. The other male looked outside, clearly distasteful of going into the cold.

"...You're right," Riku mumbled with a hurt tone, tearing his gaze away from the redhead. "Merry Christmas, Lea." Lea held his breath as Riku opened his umbrella and stepped outside. His arm wrapped around himself while he turned to give Lea one last sorrowful look. He kept hazy contact with the redhead before he walked away, the snow crunching underneath his feet.

Even though it hurt the redhead inside, he closed the door slowly, not wanting to give any reason for Riku to come back.

* * *

**To Ignie: **Flipping Ienzo?! GAH! I would have, but too bad Sora doesn't know where Lea lives. As it should be. We don't need the likes of him cockblocking! Too bad the love had to stop...but it will continue soon. They're not going to be able stop...IN THE NEXT EPISODE.

**To gaara'sGurl101:** Lea totally went for it, but Riku continued it. Oooh yeah. It'll happen again very soon, so don't you worry.

**To AuroraNyumun:** Well, I guess there's no stopping you. Go for it! And yes, I'm going to experiment with both of them switching. They're both going to bottom at least once. Nowadays, I like to think of them as that couple that doesn't care which way they do it, as long as they do it! I can't wait to write the uke Lea since it will be my first time doing so.

**To waddlekikwi: **From the start, Riku was never going to forget. Who could forget that smexy Lea? XD

**To Roadway: **I'm glad you're enjoying this pairing. I can't wait for the couple to get more popular!


	12. Car Confessions

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: OH MY LORD, this chapter is comparatively long next to the other chapters. BUT you guys deserve all this writing for waiting long enough, so here is a gift from me to you guys before I settle into college. It might be a while until the next one. I will try to get to the PMs tomorrow. It's like 2:45 in the morning here and I'm so tired...**

* * *

After last night, Lea expected Riku not to come in today for a coffee.

His expectations came true as he was dealing with a horde of customers. Through the wild rush of running back and forth, his eyes never met a silver head of hair. Lea's composure was slowly breaking; the combination of Riku not being there due to Lea hurting him and the loud bursting of orders from angry, impatient customers were driving him insane.

"Lea, I need a caramel macchiato now!" Naminé yelled, her hands busy with making three cups of coffee at a time. Her eyes were nearly bulging out of her head with stress, her hands frantically working.

"Okay, okay!" Lea shouted back, quickly filling a cup with hot milk and coffee. As he was preparing multiple orders, his eyes kept darting from the waves of fists to the hands holding money.

In a way, this sea of customers felt like retribution. It was well-deserved karma for hurting Riku yesterday. Lea never experienced a large wave of people such as this and was not handling it as well as Naminé, despite the fact that she was flying like a madwoman now.

It was some time before the wave calmed down as the lone two coworkers finally satisfied their needs of caffeine. Lea slumped on a nearby stool behind the counter, clearly exhausted from the onslaught of orders. He stared at Naminé who was not taking the after effects so well as she was preparing herself a coffee to compensate for her stress level.

"Fifteen orders, Lea. A person can only take so much," Naminé shrilled, sipping rapidly.

"Yeah." Lea was mellowed out at this point, day slowly turning into evening outside. He drank his own coffee, his eyes drifting over to Riku's usual spot. They were so full of customers that even his seat was taken by someone else. He shouldn't be thinking about the other male, but he couldn't stop. Thankfully, Naminé did not notice his blank staring as she was too absorbed in her stress. "Maybe you should take the rest of the day off," he suggested.

"Close up for me then, will you? I need a massage." Without any hesitation, Naminé threw her towel in for the day, leaving Lea there by himself. The redhead sighed, secretly praying there wouldn't be another army of customers. He barely survived with his coworker there, but without her he would surely die.

Lea started to place the chairs upside down on the tables as he was going to close up for the night. His eyes lowered as his mind wandered to Riku once more. No matter how hard he tried to forget the hurt look on the silverette's face, it always came back to make him feel guilty.

What he did was right and healthy for Riku, but it cost him his happiness. Maybe Lea should have disregarded that he was engaged and let the two of them take it further. It would have made Riku happier.

When he looked up, Lea's jaw dropped only slightly when he saw someone standing outside the café door with an umbrella in his hand. His head of silver hair blew lightly to the left due to the wind. Hesitantly, the male walked inside, bundled up in his typical winter clothing.

"Riku, I'm about to close up," Lea stated. Riku chewed at the inside of his cheek, his eyes looking at the checkered floor. He nervously readjusted the strap on his messenger bag, hanging it loosely on his shoulder.

"I know. I just...needed to see you," Riku gulped out. "I have your umbrella," he added, bowing halfway as he presented the object in his outstretched hands. "That's why I needed to see you."

"Of course," Lea softly said, taking the umbrella. He awkwardly leaned against a table, clearing his throat. He looked around the café, keeping his eyes busy with staring at objects other than Riku's eyes. With a cough, he said, "I'm going to close now. So, you can't stay here."

"Yeah." Riku's bottom lip was gnawed at by his teeth, walking behind the redhead as he followed him outside. As Lea closed the door and locked it, umbrella tucked underneath his arm, he could feel Riku's stare on him from behind. A tug on his arm caused Lea to look at the man behind him. "Yesterday..."

"Riku, we can't. I really need to get home," Lea said seriously. He was starting to walk around the male before his arm was pulled.

"W-wait. I need a ride home," Riku stuttered, his voice raising an octave. As Lea was about to actively deny him, Riku hissed out, "Please, Lea."

The silverette seemed like he really didn't need a ride home, judging by his nervous voice. But, if Riku was not lying, Lea would regret leaving him here in the cold. So, hesitantly, he allowed the silver haired male to sit beside him on the passenger's side in his car.

"Just tell me where to go."

"I, I- go straight."

Through the ride, Lea noticed something peculiar. Every time Riku gave a direction, it was hesitant and brief. Lea heard how Riku struggled to give the next direction. He would glance over to see cyan eyes nervously flitting from the window to him. The redhead did not hold any suspicion towards Riku's odd behavior...

That was until he was driving aimlessly for more than ten minutes. As Riku was giving more directions, Lea began to see familiar landmarks he had seen fifteen minutes ago. He questioned if he already drove down this street. Wasn't that the same corner store he had passed moments ago? He could have also sworn Riku just said left four times in a row.

Lea pulled over onto a one way street, not convinced by these directions anymore. He put the car in park, turning around fully to face the male next to him. "Riku. You're not giving me the right directions, are you?"

"I...I guess I'm not. I'm sorry. I think I forgot," Riku laughed lightly, his fingers playing with the ring wrapped around his digit.

"Are you doing this on purpose?"

"What? What, no. No way. I..." Riku denied as his words became more softer and inaudible. He shook involuntarily, shrinking in his seat due to nerves. "I'm sorry!" he bursted suddenly, taking Lea by surprise.

"Why are you doing this?" Lea asked exasperated.

"I like you," Riku softly admitted, connecting helpless eyes with confused green ones. "I didn't need a ride home. I just wanted to spend time with you."

"I'm taking you home," Lea said seriously, a blush overcoming is features. This was getting to be too intense for him. There was a small fire in him that would soon overheat if Riku continued. It would soon be a fiery prison he wouldn't be able to escape.

"No, please!" Riku yelled, his voice commanding enough to grab Lea's attention. Lea looked down at his hand on the shift gear as it was grabbed by two gloved ones. His hand was forced to stay in place. "Just...just let me be happy. Even if it is wrong, let me be with you, even if it is for a couple of hours. Just, just please..."

Lea was speechless at this point. He wanted Riku to be happy and enjoy the feeling of being loved by another. At the same time, Lea wanted his relationship to be stable and strong. It wasn't fair that the two things he wanted for Riku wouldn't work out together.

"Lea, please look at me."

Riku's voice sounded far off in the distance. Lea stared at his steering wheel, thinking. This was all so screwed up. Why was it that happiness can only be gained if there was hurt involved?

Lea felt his head get turned with a persistent hand. "I said to look at me," Riku murmured softly. "I don't know what you're thinking when you look away like that. I feel even more alone and left in the dark when you do that."

Green orbs moved and met with cyan ones. There were no words spoken out loud, but Lea's eyes carried a conversation that Riku fully understood.

"I know you like me, too," Riku quietly confirmed. Lea flinched and stared at his lap, familiar and recurrent troubles welling in his mind. "Don't be like that. You can't help what you feel Lea. Your feelings are not your fault."

Riku still received no verbal response. "I'm going to show you you're not wrong," he huffed out, forcing Lea to look at him once more. With a deep breath, his lips fully pecked against Lea's. It was enough to evoke a shiver from the redhead as he quickly moved away. "See, that wasn't too bad, was it?"

The comment caused Lea to somewhat smile, but he forced his lips into a thin line. "But, your fiancé-"

"No, I'm with you now," Riku interrupted as he looked down at his adorned ring finger. With a bite of his lip, he slipped the jewelry off and placed it carefully in his pocket. "See?" Lea's breath hitched in surprise. He was now staring at Riku's empty finger. His head was lifted up and dragged forward by two hands. Riku's face was now closer than ever. Lea's lips trembled as he felt the breath from Riku's words blow against his mouth. "Please don't kick me out this time."

Lea was about to agree with these terms, but Riku's lips were now brushing against his own. The silverette had a habit of interrupting him, but it always felt so good that he didn't care. Riku's hands cupped his cheeks, slid around his neck and shoulders, and then traveled down to Lea's seatbelt.

Lea was no longer constrained in his spot, now able to freely move. But, the freedom did not last too long as the other male readily climbed over the gear shift and onto Lea's lap without breaking the kiss, trapping him in his seat once more.

A hot tongue plunged an invasion in between his lips and as Lea was ready to win the war waging in his mouth, the breath was nearly knocked out of him as his seat lowered. His body followed where the seat went, now completely lying down as Riku straddled his body.

Lea tried to speak words, but it was difficult considering the smooth lips that were over his own, working their magic. Instead, he gripped onto the front of Riku's peacoat, readily unbuttoning the heavy garment, throwing away the troubles in his mind. This is what he wanted and if Riku truly wanted to do this, then so would he. Lea was tired of denying it.

"Yours too," Riku muttered as he unzipped the redhead's jacket, forcing it past his arms and shoulders. Lea's jacket soon was thrown to the empty passenger's seat. He watched as Riku then leaned up to slip his long sleeve t-shirt right over his head. Lea's mouth dried up as he scanned that oh-so-perfect chiseled skin, wanting desperately to run his fingers along it. He wanted to feel every bump and form of muscle on his chest, abdominals, and arms. "You don't only have to stare," Riku laughed lightly while nervously smiling.

Lea blushed ferociously, his hands immediately sliding up Riku's sides with a ghost-like touch. "I know that," he whispered, though he really didn't know if he was actually allowed to touch the male in front of him. In fact, he didn't know what he was doing period. Riku was probably a hell lot of experienced than him in this department.

Just to feign knowledge on this subject, Lea's palms circled all around Riku's chest and his lips found a home on his neck. Riku's pulse was strong underneath his tongue and he heard an audible groan tear from the male's throat.

"Y-you're making me too hot, Lea." That comment alone made Lea hot and he was ashamed for a couple of seconds because he got so easily riled up by a sentence. The comment meant he was doing well though, so he had to keep this up.

Lea only did what came to instinct and followed his desires. His tongue ran over Riku's neck and his mouth traveled over his collar bone. He disconnected shortly when Riku's hands were pushing his bright work polo off, throwing it on the seat next to them. His lips worked on Riku's skin again until he was pulled away by forceful hands.

"My turn," Riku whispered as he stared down at the redhead. "If, if you would let me."

"So polite," he chuckled, making the silverette blush. His laugh was cut short and trailed off into a moan as Riku found a rather sensitive spot on his chest. "S-straight for the nipple?"

"I-it looked cute," Riku hissed out loudly in defense, causing Lea to become red as a tomato. He couldn't say anymore as he watched Riku's tongue gently flick over his nubs. Lea soon began to discover he found more pleasure in the visual stimulation, and that was what was causing him to moan more.

He watched Riku's small tongue trace in swirls along his chest, down his stomach, and stop just above his happy trail of red hair. Lea froze and tensed as Riku stared up at him for approval. "May I?"

"Can you, too?" Lea asked, nervous to be the only one fully nude. He was surprised that Riku nodded to his request, his hands starting to undo his own jeans. Lea stared as the silverette's pants dropped down, eyes expanding as he saw the front of Riku's underwear packing a bulge.

"S-stop staring like that," Riku murmured, lowering the waistband of his boxer briefs slowly.

"It's just, it's..." Lea stumbled for words, his hand reaching forward on its own. His palm gently caressed what was hidden beneath those tight boxer briefs. "Just, wow."

"Lea, you too," Riku growled out, his hands shaking from the redhead's attention. "O-oh..." Riku quickly worked on getting Lea's khaki pants undone. The redhead worried that his work clothing may have not been the "sexy attire" Riku was looking for, but his thoughts diminished as a hand fondled his own matching bulge.

Lea closed his eyes, his mouth opening into the shape of an "O". How good it felt to have someone's hand on your body other than your own...Lea felt like he was in heaven.

Then it went a step further and turned even better as Riku's hand slipped into his silly flame designed boxers and wrapped around his naked cock. Skin on skin. Lea couldn't think straight. All he could muster up was that this all felt too wonderful. As Riku stroked him, his fingertips dug into Riku's back.

"Lea. Lea, look at me." Lea hesitantly opened his eyes, the pleasure making them watery. "Can you get my bag for me?"

Lea gave a weak nod before groaning and gasping. His arms felt like jelly and reached for Riku's bag that was lying on the backseat just behind him. Even if the bag was light, he weakly pulled it towards himself, handing it to Riku before moaning again.

"Yeah, I know. It feels good," Riku spoke softly with a smile, his eyes half-lidded in concentration. Lea's eyes made contact with Riku's until they closed again. He heard some shuffling from the right of him; it was probably Riku rummaging through that bag of his. Lea almost didn't notice the sounds as he felt his underwear being fully removed. "Keep your eyes closed. I just want you to feel."

"O-okay," his voice grunted out. His breath got caught in his throat as he felt something warm wrap around the tip of his cock. He grabbed onto Riku's slowly bobbing head, his head helplessly thrashing backwards. "Damn...!" Lea nearly jolted as something thin and slippery went inside him. "What's-"

"Trust me, Lea, and relax." The redhead was surprised Riku's voice was now so close to his ear. It was so soothing to his jumbled brain. He was so lost in a euphoria that he failed to notice Riku's mouth had been quickly replaced by a tight, warm fist of fingers.

"Is it weird that I completely trust you?" Lea questioned, panting at the new foreign feeling of something inside him.

"No. I understand," Riku spoke as if from experience. Lea noted the wisdom in his words. Did the silverette trust him too? "Concentrate on breathing."

"Mmn." Lea nodded as he breathed deeply, feeling Riku's finger dive in and out. He looked down as he saw the silverette squeeze from a bottle and aim the substance onto the rest of his digits. "You planned this, didn't you?" Lea grunted out, biting his lip as a second digit entered.

"I really wanted to be with you Lea," Riku said with a smile. Then the twisting and pushing of Riku's fingers brought a new foreign feeling. The redhead moaned as it slowly changed from being uncomfortable to actually feeling good. "How does that feel?"

"It feels, aaah..." Lea's eyes widened as a warm spark jolted through him. Riku brushed against something that was causing his toes to curl. His fingertips dug deeper into Riku's skin, pulling him in closely. "It feels great..."

"Yeah, I can tell. It's getting easier to move around," Riku commented with a lopsided smirk. He must have decided Lea was ready enough for him to slip in another. "Keep breathing."

Lea thought breathing was hard because it would get cut short by a hitch of breath or a noise. He opened his eyes in a daze as he felt Riku's fingers leave him from the back and front. He looked down and saw the silverette struggling with a condom.

"Are you okay?" Lea asked with concern, watching Riku's fidgety hands.

"Y-yeah, hold on," Riku lightly said with a laugh as he finally managed to open the small square packet. Lea smiled, understanding the other's dilemma. Riku was just as nervous as he was, so he decided to give the other male a helping hand. He took the condom and pinched the tip of the rubber. His palm smoothed all the way down Riku's length and rolled it downward, looking up at the embarrassed blushing male. "Thanks..."

"No problem," Lea dismissed with a smile, laying back on his elbows. "Riku, you're sure you want to do this?"

Riku answered with a sudden, rough kiss. Lea was pushed back completely against the seat as Riku fully pressed into the male. Lea felt a hand push one of his legs to the side and watched as Riku settled in between his thighs. "You're ready?"

Lea nodded, breathing in deeply as a hard pressure was applied against his rear end. He grunted as a thickness entered him slowly, immediately digging his fingernails into Riku's back.

The feeling was uncomfortable and painful to say the least. Lea didn't exactly know what he was getting himself into, but he at least learned from stories. He just never experienced it until now. But he would never admit that to Riku out loud. If the man knew he was taking his virginity, he would probably stop. Riku would just argue that he should do this with someone who is not engaged.

"Oh- oh man," he heard Riku pant into his ear. While Lea was feeling the pain that came with stretching, the man above him shivered with pleasure. That was all the encouragement Lea needed to withstand it. "Are-are you okay?" Through the pleasure, the silverette still showed concern for him, even if he had difficulty trying to speak.

"Keep going," Lea grunted. "All the way inside." The redhead bit his bottom lip when Riku moved forward in one fluid motion, his eyes shutting tightly. Riku wasn't kidding the time he claimed he wasn't "small".

The silverette's lips were pressed against his neck, sucking and nipping the skin as an apology for the pain he was bringing the male beneath him. "It'll get better," he breathed in a promise.

Lea knew it would get more intense. He laid there as Riku kept reminding him to breathe deeply and relax. The redhead gave a small experimental roll of his hips and in return, heard Riku give out a small noise. With just his hips, Lea showed he was capable of going through some pain to give this man pleasure.

"L-Lea," Riku stuttered, one of his eyes closing shut. "I-I guess you're ready then."

The redhead gasped as Riku began to move. Riku's thickness slowly pumped inside his body, giving him this full feeling. He breathed deeply every time the silverette pressed forward, his lips just gliding and teasing over his. "Oh, Riku..."

"D-does it...feel good?" Riku muttered, practically almost kissing the taller male.

"Y-yeah. It's so good..." Lea was almost getting frustrated that their lips were so close, yet not even fully pressed together. He soon forgot about this agitation as Riku moved a bit faster. "O-oh man..."

"Lea," Riku moaned out, making Lea shudder violently. Hearing his name come out of that man's mouth was giving him pleasant chills. His grip became tighter on Riku's shoulders, holding on as the male thrusted faster.

Lea groaned more prominently as the friction between them actually started to escalate. He never thought this would have happened. He never thought that this would feel so amazing...

"I never expected you to be quite the loud one," Riku commented, clearly out of breath. Lea moaned and flushed in response, wiggling under Riku.

Lea tried to say something, but his breath hitched at the most inopportune moment of trying to complete his sentence. Instead, he kissed the male so hard that their teeth crashed together awkwardly.

"Nn, oww," Lea grumbled, looking up at Riku for any signs of damage. He didn't seem to be hurt, but through his parted lips he could see a small thin trail of blood on his lips. Even Lea's awkwardness couldn't leave him during bed. "R-Riku, I'm sorry."

"Lea, it's..."

But the redhead was so concerned that he tried to stop the male from thrusting just to tend to his small wound. Riku stilled his movements, panting to catch his breath. "Your lip is bleeding, because of me, I'm so sorry." When Lea spoke, it was quickly in one breath.

"Lea, it's no big deal," Riku laughed breathlessly, swiping his tongue across his lip. Taking the redhead by surprise, his hips rocked quickly back and forth.

"But-" Lea was about to say something more about injuring Riku, but his eyes suddenly expanded as there was pleasure mixed with a twisting feeling in his stomach. "Riku, I'm, you have to stop-"

His sentence was cut off as Riku read his message loud and clear and decided to help out the redhead. His hand cupped Lea's need, pumping in time with his thrusts. One stroke was all the taller male needed before he let go, moaning out loudly in the small vicinity of his car.

"Lea!" Riku gasped out. Through the mist of his cloudy eyes and orgasm, Lea initially thought he had done something wrong. But, then he felt Riku shudder and bury himself inside to the hilt. The redhead had the pleasure of looking at Riku's sweaty face contort into something so heavenly and blissful during his orgasm. "Lea..."

Lea felt warmth as Riku's body collapsed onto his. He looked up at the ceiling of his car in a daze, not exactly back on Earth yet.

"Oh Lea, you were amazing," Riku gasped out, his face hiding in the crook of Lea's neck. Lea couldn't stop the goofy grin that came across his lips. Riku just said he felt amazing because of _**him**_. It made him ecstatic that Riku reciprocated the same thoughts as he.

"Riku," Lea hesitated, trying to chose his words carefully. But, there was no safe way in admitting his feelings. "Riku, you're always amazing." The silverette's lips curved into a smile against his neck and cuddled comfortably against him.

It took half an hour before Riku fell completely limp against Lea's chest, now asleep from exhaustion. Lea brushed the male's hair lightly with his fingers, his eyes closing with adoration. The male was definitely asleep.

It was safe for the redhead to murmur out something he just wanted to scream out. "I love you..."

* * *

**To AuroraNyumun:** Your poor poor heart! We can fix it up. There's nothing duct tape can't do! Or this chapter that hopefully mends it a little, whatever floats your boat! :D I really enjoyed writing an uke Lea. I could see why, though, because he's just a tall, passionate, cute dork. It's definitely different, but I have an open mind to it now, especially since I've written it. I'm glad that I did!

**To Ignie:** No no! No need to call Demyx! Here, here, see, they're together, master Ignie! -sweatdrop- Haha but this made me laugh a lot. Your comments are so sweet and then BAM you threaten the characters! XD Please don't kill them yet, I still need to loan them for this rest of this story. THEN you can have them!

**To gaara'sGurl101:** I don't know why all of these reviews make me smile and laugh! It's like "grumble grumble WELL Sora's probably riding some guy's stick now, SO be together now! You're a stupid idiot Lea grumble grumble" I agree though. Lea, go for it!


	13. Tying the Knot

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: College is in less than seven days, holy crap. Enjoy the chapter today for again, it might be a while before the next one!**

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Lea felt like a new fresh man when he prepared coffees several mornings later.

He was more exuberant and clumsier than usual, always laughing after a little mishap such as nearly tripping over his own feet or knocking over the neat stack of coffee cups he had arranged the night before. He was carrying this bright aura and overly huge smile wherever he walked, getting strange looks from passerbyers.

It was not one, not two, but three days later in the early morning before they opened when Naminé stopped Lea right in his happy tracks on the way to the storage room in the back. "What's the big deal?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Lea laughed with a smile, going past her into the room. Naminé placed her hands on her hips, her lips smiling.

"Oh, you've just been in a good mood lately."

"Well, thanks for noticing," Lea replied with charm, setting down a small ladder to reach the highest shelf of boxes. His hands extended and gripped the box labelled with "CUPS", carefully climbing back down. He steadied the box with one arm smiling as he walked out of the small room.

"I'm glad for you Lea. I was afraid that you would be mopey since your little crush has a fiancé," Naminé said as she walked by Lea's side. Lea carefully set the box down on the counter, releasing a long breath. If only Naminé knew. "Speak of the devil," she said as her head tilted in the direction of the door.

The redhead was fishing out cups to set up in their work space when he looked up. Lea's heart sped as he saw him just standing there outside the door, his hands shoved into his peacoat pockets. Riku waved a hand, beckoning the older male to come outside. "I'll be right back," Lea said, placing the cups down. He manually slowed down his stride to not show his eagerness.

He grabbed his jacket on the way out for some shield from the cold, letting the door close behind him with a ding. "You're here early," Lea stated with a smile.

"I wanted to catch you before work if that's okay," Riku said. His body shifted from side to side and he smiled shyly. "I wanted to ask if you wanted to go out to dinner tonight."

Lea tried to stabilize himself. He was about to melt into a puddle right on the welcome mat even if it was chilly. "Yeah!" he answered excitedly, but he forced his exuberant smile to drop. "I mean, absolutely," he added in a calmer tone.

"I can't wait." Riku then buried his chin into his bundle of a scarf, growing red from his own eagerness. "I mean, I'll see you tonight. Until then, Lea."

"Later," Lea replied, watching Riku as he walked away. Then he watched as Riku stopped with his foot in mid-air, turned around, and walk back to him.

"There is also one more thing. Sora is holding some sort of New Year's Party at the house and he told me to invite some people," Riku explained slowly, his foot kicking the snow lightly. "If you and Naminé would like to come, and if you would like to keep me company..."

"Sure, I'd like to go," Lea accepted with a smile. "Just to see you."

"G-great!" Riku chirped, nervously twisting his foot in a patch of unmelted ice. He turned away from the redhead slowly, his head facing the male. "Until tonight then, Lea?"

"Yeah. See you later," Lea said. He watched Riku walk down the sidewalk yet again, looking back at him every so often with that adorable smile of his. Lea sighed dreamily, going back inside the café. Riku just asked him out on a real date. He even jumped and a held a spontaneous and quick victory pose in the air. He was practically flying through the clouds of his euphoric heaven.

"Lea." The brisk female voice clipped Lea's wings and brought him tumbling harshly back to Earth. His head snapped to look at her with a face that completely dropped any emotion he was expressing earlier. "Don't you dare tell me that you still like that man."

The accusation was so painfully obvious that Lea couldn't deny the truth that was spoken. He couldn't pretend he didn't just jump for joy, so he was only able to do one thing. Become silent.

"I knew it," Naminé said as she pointed her finger at Lea, coming through the saloon styled mini door from the counter. She stalked down Lea slowly as he walked away to start setting up the chairs. "Lea, don't tell me you're in too deep."

"I'm just excited because he invited us to a New Year's party," Lea lied with a smile.

"Well I don't think- a party?" Naminé gasped, eyes glittering. If there was anything that could distract the blonde from anything, it would be a party. She loved going out, having fun, and meeting new people. It was the perfect and convenient distraction.

"Yeah, that means you're going to have to get a new outfit," Lea egged on.

Lea secretly thanked Riku for inviting him and Naminé to that party. Now the girl wouldn't stop yapping about her outfit of choice and what colors were in winter season. She kept squealing as if she barely had chances to go out and have some fun. Needless to say, Lea was happy for the girl even if he completely sidetracked her from his affections towards Riku. Lea didn't mind the girl talk so much from the blonde, as long as she wasn't scolding him for loving Riku.

Lea sighed blissfully at the end of the day. One, he didn't have to put up with Naminé's girlish outbursts of excitement and two, he would soon be alone and together with Riku.

And there he was on cue, tapping lightly on the glass door with one hand and waving with the other. Lea grinned, throwing on his jacket while jogging out the door to meet his beloved. "I still need to get dressed," he said as he looked Riku over. He was wearing the same newspaper boy hat from their aquarium 'outgoing' that Lea loved so much on him. "Fancy tonight?"

"Yeah," Riku answered sheepishly, scratching the tip of his nose. "Do you like it?"

Lea didn't know the contents of his outfit underneath his peacoat, but he knew those pants fit nicely around Riku's toned legs. "I'm just wondering what's under there," Lea commenting gesturing to Riku's peacoat.

"You mean under my clothes?" Riku asked with a shy blush. Lea turned red from the misinterpretation. All he meant from that comment was what he was wearing underneath his jacket, not how he looked like without his clothes.

"I-I mean, well I know how you look like already..." Lea stopped himself before he could say anything more humiliating. Riku merely giggled, seizing Lea by the arm and dragging him away to his car. All the way to his house, the silverette kept teasing that he was turning Lea into a pervert.

The redhead blushed through the whole ride, his head bowed in slight shame. He knew Riku was joking, but he really couldn't stop thinking about when they had sex. After all, he was currently sitting and driving in the very spot where they did it.

Lea was relieved when he left the car, therefore leaving his thoughts of what happened on that driver's seat. "I'll wait here," Riku called, leaning against the hood of Lea's car. He smiled at the taller male before he completely disappeared into his house.

As Lea closed the front door behind him, he slid down to the ground with his back against the door with a deep breath. Here, he could calm himself down, cleanse his dirty thoughts, and try to focus on an innocent date with the other male.

But, that night came back in flashes as Lea was picking out some clothes. His lips, his touch, his voice. It was a mantra that kept repeating over and over. He knew the reason; he was in love with Riku.

Lea's hands fumbled with his outfit the entire time. He put his blazer's buttons on incorrectly at least two times and kept straightening out the wrinkles of his white button up. He tucked in the shirt one too many times and put on his winter gloves, deciding it would be fine. He didn't have a choice anyway since he didn't own any fancy jacket.

When he exited the house, he caught Riku's attention. Much to his delight, the silverette's eyes raked over him with a pink hue spraying across his cheeks.

"You clean up nice," Riku complimented as he walked over to the redhead, his eyes darting from emerald eyes to his body. Lea smiled, basking in his successful attire before Riku murmured, "But, you're not a tie kind of guy, huh?"

"Huh?" Lea looked down as Riku's fingers traced their way up to the sloppy knot his tie was in. He swallowed thickly, looking at the other male for some assistance. "I, I'm sorry."

"Here, let me help you with that," Riku offered with a soft, sweet voice. Lea watched the silverette's fingers slowly undo the knot of his silk tie. Lea's eyelids lowered in admiration as those skillful fingers wrapped the silk around his digits and pulled the tie through the loop. As he finished the tie, Riku looked up, the corner of his lips lifting up. "You're very handsome, Lea," he whispered with a loving look, his fingers caressing Lea's face.

The handsome redhead smiled with a deep flush at the compliment. Oh how that made his heart beat warmly. Then he felt Riku's soft lips peck his cheek, making skin light up quickly right on the spot. "Let's walk there together, okay?" Lea nodded quickly in agreement as Riku's hand held his.

It was a sweet gesture that Lea gladly returned. Even if he only had a blazer and gloves to shield him from the cold, Riku provided enough warmth by walking side by side with the male. The hand that was encased by Riku's was far warmer than his empty one.

The two shared a few laughs as they accidentally bumped into each other several times during the walk. Riku was an uncoordinated, clumsy guy and Lea loved that about him.

He stopped when Riku did. The silverette smiled at him before guiding him inside the building they stopped right in front of. Lea gazed upon the Japanese themed restaurant. It was an authentic restaurant, where there were enclosed tatami doors and cushioned seats low on the ground. When they were seated past one of those sliding doors, Lea sat cross legged on the cushion right across from Riku.

Lea noticed the intimacy of this place. The tatami doors were closed by the waiter who left their presence. The lantern styled lights were dim. They were alone in this square room, just the two of them.

"Lea, what do you think?" Riku asked as he shed his peacoat. The redhead misinterpreted the question as he looked over Riku. The vest over a short sleeved button shirt showcased Riku's firm arms.

"You look great," Lea gulped, admiring Riku's body. Riku's head swayed gently with laughter and he reached to hold Lea's hand across the table.

"No, silly. I meant the place."

"Oh. Uh, it looks very nice," Lea replied as he scratched the back of his head.

"That's good. I brought us here so we can talk privately," Riku explained.

"Privately," Lea repeated the last of Riku's words distractedly as he felt a thumb slowly caress his hand.

"Yes," the silver haired male giggled, his other hand patting Lea's hand in understanding for the lack of articulate vocabulary. "I, I really need to talk to you."

"What do you want to talk about?" Lea asked before one of the tatami doors slid open. The waiter placed a tray with two bowls of miso soup onto the table, and set aside two menus. Riku thanked him before the door was closed again, leaving the men alone once more.

Lea was afraid as he awaited Riku's answer to his question. There was this small doubt that maybe Riku didn't want to see him anymore. Maybe he scared the other male with their passionate night and made him aware that this was wrong. But, Lea realized he was stupid for thinking so negatively. Here he could plainly see Riku still smiling happily and holding his hand with both of his own. "I wanted to say that I don't think I'm ready for marriage," Riku answered with a grin still on his face.

Lea did not share the happiness the other had. "Oh," the redhead deadpanned, his smile slowly disappearing from his face. "You, you can still wait. If you need more time."

"What I mean is that I don't want to get married," Riku further explained with a bright smile. As Lea finally understood Riku's words, he instantly lit up. "At all," he emphasized, waiting for a further reaction from Lea.

"What does this mean?" the redhead questioned.

"What this means is, I'm going to tell Sora this is not going to work. And that I..." Riku briefly glanced at their intertwined hands in the middle of the table. "I want to be with you, Lea."

"You do?" the redhead gasped. "Like, romantically?" The pale skinned male laughed as he leaned across the table and kissed the redhead softly.

"Yes. I want to date you. I want to kiss you. I want to...do other things with you." Riku blushed as his fingers traced along Lea's knuckles. "The important question is, do you want to be with me?"

"Uh, duh," Lea said matter-of-factly. He was ecstatic and excitedly grabbed both of Riku's hands, encasing them between his palms. "I'd be stupid to say no."

"Then, let's order. To a future us," Riku grinned with his perfect set of teeth, squeezing Lea's hands tightly.

"To a future us," Lea repeated with an equal smile.

* * *

**A.N.: Hey guys. Did you get it? Like Tying the Knot? Like tying the neck tie? And they...got together like...tying the knot? Get it? It's a pun? :D -gets shot- Ok ok I stop. ;-;**

**To gaara'sGurl101:** Yeah, Sora is still in the picture believe it or not! But at least Riku and Lea got some of each other's sweet sugar beforehand hmm hmm hmm.

**To AuroraNyumun:** I don't mind people depicting Axel/Lea as this cocky guy, but it's nice to have versatility! He has a little bit of everything which is why I understand others doing this. I like writing him either way. Though I personally enjoy writing him more as he is, the cute dorky guy he secretly is. Even his actions show he's someone who gets embarrassed very easily. He's always scratching the back of his head like he's this modest dork! C'mon Lea, you're too cute sometimes. He's making ME blush. Anyways, I'm glad you're feeling better and that I helped you in some way.

**To Ignie:** Don't forget hai! And HELL TO THE FLIP YES. No, no Demyx needed here! That boss was hard in the game! I don't want to relive that horrible memory! Noooo! Well the boss is not that bad...Okay, Lea won't hurt the Riku! Or will he...HUEHUEHUE. Glad you enjoyed the chapter. :3


	14. Out of Time

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: Night guys, I move in early tomorrow. Trying to hurry to get this chapter in before I start school.**

* * *

It was New Year's Eve and Lea was currently standing in front of the mirror, trying to pose confidently in his outfit.

It was the day of the New Year's party where he would see Riku. He wanted to look his best and cause the male to profusely blush when he saw Lea "spiffied up".. And strangely, he wanted this to all happen in front of Sora. Tonight, Lea would indirectly show the brunette he made Riku much happier than he did.

Lea didn't know where this possessiveness came from, but a persistent honking outside teared him from his spot. He ran right out his door to see Naminé going button happy with her buggy's car horn.

"I'm coming, I'm coming sheesh!" Lea called as he jogged to her car, getting inside the small vehicle. "Some people just can't wait."

"Well, I want to get there while my hair is looking this perfect," Naminé giggled, driving off before Lea even had a chance to strap on his seatbelt. The redhead sunk into his seat from the sudden velocity, quickly fumbling for his seatbelt before he died in the car with a hasty blonde.

Several more near death experiences on the road later, Lea breathed slowly as he exited the car. Never again was he stepping inside the same car with Naminé when she was in an excited hurry.

"Come on, come on!" Naminé squealed as she ran up beside the male out of nowhere, hurrying him to the house's front door. Lea inwardly groaned as he saw the amount of people inside through the glass door. It was even left unlocked as an easy and pleasant welcome for the guests. But, that only meant Lea couldn't shrink and sneak in unnoticed like he hoped.

He earned the attention of a certain brunette who smiled as the two walked in. "Naminé! Lea! It's very nice to see you guys again," Sora said with a smile. Without skipping a beat, the short smiling male motioned a hand over for a magenta haired girl and a blonde boy to come over.

Naminé was just as bubbly as the group was introduced. Lea didn't feel the need to talk since the blonde did all the talking. He only caught their names briefly, Kairi and Roxas. He didn't pay much attention to anything else since his focus was on trying to find Riku.

Lea saw tables full of food, snacks, and punch. There was even upbeat music playing where there were some people dancing on the open floor. In a corner of what seemed to be the living room, there was a television playing the news channel that was now live right in front of the New Year's Ball.

As his eyes wandered around the building, he realized this really wasn't just a "house". The size was in between a regular home and a mansion. There was even a set of stairs for the second floor and Lea wondered why there would be a need for so much space.

What disturbed him however was that this house was big and Riku would be more alone than ever if he got married. But the silverette chose to be with him, so Lea didn't have to worry about that.

Lea's eyes finally stopped again at the top of the stairs. Riku...

The silver haired customer walked down in what seemed to be in slow motion. The noises from the party drowned into silence until Lea's own heartbeat pounded strongly in his ear. Riku's eyes stared right at him, freezing him to his spot. His smile made his heart melt like butter on a pan.

"Riku, come here!" Sora's voice penetrated Lea's focus on the attractive male. The noises from the party came back on full volume as Lea shook his head violently.

Riku galloped down the stairs slowly. He joined their small forming group, running his fingers through his short hair briefly. "Hey," he greeted the group. But, Lea knew Riku was mainly greeting him on account of how his eyes stared at him.

Lea tried not to cringe through the brief meeting between the six of them as Sora held Riku's hand. His eyes kept uncomfortably looking at the locked hands and the left tanned finger that had a ring. He noticed Riku also had his ring, but probably only for show.

Eventually, Naminé went off to mingle with her new buddies and chat it up with the blonde boy that she was so obviously interested in. This left Lea with the "engaged" couple and he hoped that Sora would let go of Riku's hand already.

"It looks like we're running out of snacks," Riku commented as he stared at the table.

"What pigs. I'll go get more later." Sora leaned up to give Riku a kiss on the cheek causing the silverette to give a small, fleeting smile. Lea watched as the brunette took off to join the group lounging on the couch. He really did have a lot of friends...

"I'm glad you came," Riku murmured, earning Lea's attention right away. "I'm not much of a party person."

"Me neither. But, at least you look great," Lea said softly, his eyes scanning Riku's snug v-neck sweater. The patch of skin near his collarbone was just too appealing to the sight. "Though I'm a bit jealous now."

Riku's expression changed slightly, his eyes becoming foggy. "Meet me upstairs, okay? I'll give you a reason to not be jealous," he whispered with a smile. Lea felt the small brush of Riku's hand against the side of his arm before he left him. He stood in shock as he watched the male's hips away slightly as he climbed up the stairs, disappearing around a corner.

Did Riku just flirt with him?

Lea gulped as he loosened the collar of his undershirt underneath his sweater, biting his bottom lip. He felt the back of his neck heat up and the starting signs of perspiration. Did it suddenly get hot in here?

The redhead stiffly walked over to a conversing Sora. He made his presence known with a clear of his throat. The brunette brightly smiled, calling to him, "Hey, Lea! What's going on?"

"Do you have a, err, restroom?" Lea asked awkwardly. 'Please let it be upstairs,' he thought hopefully.

"Yep! It's upstairs, first door on the left."

Lea bowed his leave with a thanks, going towards the stairs. He stiffly grabbed onto the railing as his legs climbed the steps. As the barista made it to the top, he was pulled to the side quickly.

"It's me," a voice gasped into his ear, making the tall male profusely blush. Lea pulled back to see a flushed Riku. He didn't get to stare for long before he was pushed into the nearest room, the door closing behind them. Two arms wrapped around the redhead as he felt lips peck several times against his cheek. "Lea," Riku whispered, his hands threading through the redhead's ponytail.

Lea noticed the wanton tone in Riku's voice. He gulped nervously as Riku's body needily pressed against his. "We're away from everybody else," he continued to whisper, guiding Lea's head down. "I've been wanting to kiss you for the longest time."

"Riku," Lea hissed out before he felt Riku's lips claim his aggressively. A wanton moan leaked into Lea's mouth before Riku pulled away with a gasp.

"Okay, I'm good..." Riku giggled, his face hiding in the crook of Lea's neck. "I, I just really wanted to do that."

The redhead blushed and stood silently, still stunned from their shared kiss and Riku's change of attitude. "Yeah, that was really nice," he finally choked out. His body was finally responsive as his arms wrapped around Riku's waist, pulling him in closely.

"Nn," he heard the silverette hum out happily. If Lea didn't realize earlier, he would have realized now that Riku really enjoyed spending any moment with him. Lea hugged Riku more tightly in a shared comfortable silence before his ears caught the faraway sound of music playing from downstairs.

"You hear that?" Lea murmured into the short strands of silver hair. "I think that means you're going to dance with me again. Hope you've been practicing."

"I guess I'm screwed," Riku chuckled as he, too, heard the slow dance music.

Lea's hands held the other's waist softly, guiding the male to shift from side to side. Riku followed his movements, his body swaying back and forth. The redhead felt the male settle into this mesmerizing sway. Riku's movements caused his body to brush against Lea's chest.

Lea shivered, his hands traveling lower to those swaying tempting hips. "Looks like you did practice," he huskily murmured.

"Maybe in front of the mirror," Riku whispered back, turning around in one lucid half-twirl. Lea felt the full length of Riku's back pressed against the front of his body. Riku's arms reached behind to dangle loosely about Lea's neck. The redhead could feel the tips of fingertips loosely graze against the base of his skull.

"You're so...beautiful," Lea said softly. He turned the male to face him and his lips heatedly found Riku's.

"Mnn," Riku moaned, pulling away after a minute. "I love you, Lea..." Lea's face showed the shock that paralyzed him to the spot. Riku shared the same reaction before his fingers traced against his own lips. "I, I'm sorry. Was that too soon?"

"No, I lo-" Lea was about to confess, but the lack of music stopped his words. An excited murmur amongst the guests downstairs caused Riku to separate from him.

"Sounds like the ball's about to drop," Riku commented with a nervous smile, playing with a strand of his hair. "I'll see you downstairs," he called softly before exiting the room.

Lea gulped as he counted at least ten seconds before going downstairs as well. As he was at the bottom, Naminé pulled him aside, smiling excitedly.

"Where have you been? The ball's about to drop!" Naminé cheered. Lea was about to answer, or rather lie, that he went to the restroom, but was interrupted by further excited talking. "Oh, never mind. Here, Sora's been handing these out to everybody here."

Lea was handed an envelope. Curiously, he began to reach for the flap until his hand was slapped by Naminé. "Not now! He said he'll tell you when to open it."

"Well, then," Lea muttered before his eyes ripped away from the nagging blonde to a persistent tapping of glass. The sound came from Sora, who was tapping a spoon against his glass of what Lea assumed to be champagne or apple cider.

"Everyone! Attention, well I think I got all of your attention," he nervously chuckled out, earning some lighthearted laughter from some of the crowd. Lea absentmindedly listened as Sora continued. "Well, each of you were handed an envelope. Don't open it!" he randomly yelled out to the short blonde in front, Roxas, who stuck out his tongue. "Geez! Anyways, where's Riku!"

Riku was playfully shoved by Kairi to where Sora was standing. He nervously fiddled with the sleeve of his sweater, finding it uncomfortable to be in front of a group of people. "It's okay, I'm not going to make you say anything," Sora giggled before Riku significantly relaxed.

"Now before we celebrate the beginning of a New Year, I would just like to say that- Roxas don't open it!" Sora chided again. He sighed before continuing his speech. "Riku."

The silverette confusedly faced him as his name was called. "Riku, when this ball drops, usually people celebrate a new year with their lovers with a kiss. I would like to celebrate with something else."

Lea had this uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach. He shook off the feeling by standing differently, passing it off as some...embarrassing bowels problem.

"Riku, I want to celebrate with this," Sora announced, standing there with a blush as he searched through his pocket. Excited 'oohs' and 'aaahs' rang through the room as Sora dropped to his knee, coming from everyone except Lea.

**No.**

"Would you marry me this weekend to the start of a New Year with us?"

**This was not happening. It was too soon.**

The uncomfortable feeling shot straight to Lea's stomach once more. He was beginning to feel nauseous and cold as his breathing stopped. He watched Riku intently. The silverette was struggling to say something, anything. Any other time, Lea knew he would have refused and maybe secretly, right now, he didn't want to accept.

But, there was this group staring at him. Friends, possibly close friends. They were excited to hear one answer and one answer only: the positive outburst of yes that would send them into a screaming uproar. There was peer pressure, there was this powerful presence of people forcing him to answer oppositely from what he would normally answer.

Although it was obvious, Lea was still heartbroken as he heard the forced, "Yes" slip out of Riku's lips. He tried to block out the cheers that followed afterward. He willed his eyes to go blind at the sight of Sora happily hugging the silver haired male and kissing him on the lips.

Then there were more cheers and friendly kisses amongst others as the ball finally dropped. He was numb as Naminé hugged him and kissed him on the cheek in celebration of the New Year and the upcoming marriage of two lovers who were a match in heaven.

Over Naminé's shoulder, Lea saw Riku staring at him. Even all the way across the room, he could understand the feelings the other was experiencing. Shock, fear, sorrow. There was no sign of happiness or light that were previously shining in them.

Lea waited a couple of minutes before whispering to Naminé he didn't feel so well. It wasn't a lie either. When she offered to take him home, Lea denied her help. He had to leave and not say goodbye to anybody.

It was over.

* * *

**A.N.: SAD CLIFFHANGER POWERS...activate!**

**To AuroraNyumun:** That's good that you still maintain a healthy friendship with your ex. I hope to do the same with mine! And I could totally imagine Sora doing that. XD He's too nice of a guy to not do that. I feel he would be Riku's friend for life, no matter what happens.

**To gaara'sGurl101:** I can't wait to write the reaction. It might be what some or no one expects. And I'm glad you enjoyed my corny pun. XD Yes someone who does! No crickets this time!

**To Ignie:** Another person who likes my pun yay! The two of them happy is what makes me squeak with embarrassment. And Riku would be like "Oh, okay, so, does this mean...can I be with Lea?" And it's like "Yeah!" Nah, I wish it could be that easy!


	15. Far From Over

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **For the wedding vows, I have taken bits and pieces from the Internet of priest speeches. I wanted this to seem as legitimate as possible since I have never attended a wedding in my life, so I've done some research before writing this chapter. I give credit to Yahoo Answers for the priest's speech. Also, I do not own Kingdom Hearts.

**A.N. I managed to fit a chapter in before classes start in two days! So I'm forewarning you, this story will be over in two more chapters.**

* * *

"Today is really the day, isn't it?"

Lea's finger traced over the open envelope he received nights before. He blankly looked over the glossed invitation, which was designed with intricate type and shiny glossed ribbons. "You are cordially invited to..." he started to read emotionlessly. The rest of his words blended into one muttering sentence.

Lea sighed as he allowed the invitation to fall to the ground. He looked down at his bare knees, slapping his palms against them in a rhythmic matter. "I can't believe you're getting married, Riku," he sighed out. "I really can't believe it."

Lea stressfully smoothed a hand over his spiky hair, smiling wistfully. Oh, how he wished he could go back in time and stop this from ever happening. But there was no hope in wishing. Sora already proposed and Riku accepted. There was no turning back now. Maybe if Sora had not asked him publicly, things would have turned out differently and for the better. The most Lea could do, however, was to put on a happy façade.

He followed through with this plan when he was at the wedding ceremony. Lea was acting no matter how much it hurt him to keep a smile on his face.

The redhead fixed the creases of his tuxedo that were forming on his shoulders. He tried to do any little action to distract himself from breaking down right here. It was difficult to keep himself busy because of the wedding's location. Of all places, why did Riku have to get married here?

It was a huge smack to his face when he first opened the envelope. Now, Lea was here sitting on one of the many lines up chairs in the aquarium.

It was where they had their first date.

Lea looked about uncomfortably, the aquarium still having the same beauty as last time, only it was now decorated. The redhead had to at least hand it to the decorators; it was magnificent.

There were two groups of white chairs, neatly arranged along the aisle that ran between. A clean light blue rug was rolled up the aisle with white rose petals strewn across the edges. At the end of the aisle, there was a wooden pedestal placed in front of the glass aquarium. Along the outside of the glass, white lace curtains and a vine of white races were placed in an arc.

Beside the outside of the chairs, tables with bouquets of white and blue flowers were in vases with small fish swimming inside them. Lea intently stared at the small creatures until a poke on his shoulder got his attention.

"Hey, you look handsome!" Naminé greeted teasingly. Her hair was tied in a neat bun and she had a long sweetheart dress on. She seemed proud of her fancy clothes.

"And you're still short even with heels on," Lea commented wily. That earned a playful shove from the blonde as she sat down next to him, placing her small purse on her lap.

"Wow, this place is beautiful. And I see a lot of people from the party here."

Lea searched the premises, catching a few people he indeed did recognize. He didn't notice so many, however, since he left the party early for something he wished he could forget. But, how could he forget if this wedding was the cause?

A look of anger passed his face as he saw Sora, dressed in his tuxedo with the biggest smile on his face. He was walking with an older person in ceremonial robes, most likely the person who would bewed the two today. It became more obvious as the person walked and stood behind the pedestal, still conversing with Sora.

"It looks like it's about to start soon," Naminé whispered as she saw the very people Lea was watching.

"Yeah. I'm going to congratulate the groom," Lea lied as he stood up quickly. He side saddled between the seats, eventually walking along the side of the chairs and far away from everyone else.

Lea was overwhelmed by this need to see Riku before he walked down that aisle and marry right out of his life. As Lea walked through a familiar aquatic tunnel, he stopped, his footstep resounding into silence.

Riku leaned against the glass, his eyes interestedly looking at the pair of black, white, and yellow angel fish swimming in place together. He seemed to not know of Lea's presence before the redhead murmured, "Hey."

Riku turned around, eyes murky as the ocean behind him. "Lea, you're here," he stated in a soft surprised voice, taking hesitant steps towards him.

"I am. What are you looking at?" Lea asked curiously.

"Angelfish," Riku answered before turning around again. He stayed silent as the redhead took small steps, standing by his side. He took a deep, shuddering breath before he continued. "Did you know...angelfish love each other for life?"

Lea bit his tongue to prevent any words of the resemblance between the fish and themselves. He watched as Riku's palm covered his own mouth, his eyes squinting painfully. "I'm sorry for my behavior. I should be happy."

"But you're not," Lea stated as a fact as he watched Riku wipe his eyes with the back of his hand. The silverette sniffed lightly as he turned to face the taller male. "And I don't think you will be after this."

"Lea..." Riku's eyes met the redhead's sadly. He crossed his arms briefly as he examined something below Lea's chin and he shook his head. "Oh, Lea. Look. Your tie."

Lea's lips parted in semi-shock as his fingers fumbled with a messily knotted tie. "I'm not very good at this."

"Here, let me help," Riku offered with a small smile. He had almost closed the distance in between the two of them as he began to fiddle with Lea's tie. Lea closed his eyes, knowing this would be the last time Riku would ever do this. "There we go."

"...Riku."

Riku's hands slowly left Lea's chest. "You're so handsome as always..." he murmured as his hands settled at his own sides. His lips quivered once and he looked down, wrapping his arms around his own frame. "But you're still not the tie and suit kind of guy, huh. Even at my own wedding."

The words that leaked out of Riku's mouth were sweet déjà vu that made Lea smile for a short moment. He bit his lip as he tried to fight some tears himself. "Riku, I wish you said no."

"It's too late for that. All I can hope is that I'll be happy." Riku looked up at Lea worriedly as the familiar instrumental of music began to play. He looked in the direction of the soft piano playing the beginning of his wedding march.

"Why," Lea whispered.

Riku didn't know the extent of Lea's question, and yet he fully understood. Pain came to his eyes as he gently pushed Lea. "There's not much time left. You have to go sit."

"But, I love you too!" Lea yelled out, staying stubbornly in his spot. "And you love me." Riku bit his lip harshly, his head shaking from side to side. His hands grabbed Lea's face as he looked at him.

"Lea. Be strong and forget about me. If you're sad, then I can never be truly happy," Riku gulped, having difficulty holding in his tears. He pushed the other away roughly, pointing a finger in the direction where Lea came from. "Now go. Please...go...and don't look back. I must do this."

When he was pushed away, something shattered inside the redhead. Something was slowly tearing and ripping to shreds as he followed Riku's instructions, sliding past seats of sitting guests to his own chair. As Lea sat down, he gripped onto the collar of his blazer with a painfully tight hold.

"Lea?" he heard Naminé call. But, he heard the sounds of chairs creaking from the shift of weight from the guests. Lea looked in that direction, at the beginning of the aisle where Riku was starting to walk.

Riku looked absolutely beautiful. With a white tuxedo and a light blue vest, he looked like an angel himself.

Lea's eyes captured Riku's line of sight for a few seconds. It was some seconds' worth of the shared pain before Riku tearfully ripped his gaze away, continuing to march up the aisle as if it were his duty. Lea merely watched as Riku walked down slowly, counting down the seconds. Each step to the music was a step away from ever being with him.

When he finally made it to the pedestal at the end, Lea nervously grabbed the material of his pants. It was almost time.

Sora faced Riku and held his hands with a smile as the priest began his speech. "We are gathered here today on this beautiful evening to share with Sora and Riku as they exchange vows of their everlasting love."

Lea continued to watch as the couple stood there. The priest's words were now just a background noise as Lea did not listen as attentively. As the speech went on, his eyes focused on the way Sora adoringly looked at Riku. He would give up anything in the world if he were in Sora's spot right now.

"...your love for each other will grow deeper and stronger with each passing day..."

Lea nodded to the statement as if it were directly said to him instead of Sora. Every time Riku and Lea met, their affections grew for one another. In the span of time they spent together, he felt more and more attached to the silver haired male.

How true those words were if they were spoken to him instead of Sora.

A hushed whisper from Naminé grabbed his attention. "Hey...you okay there?"

At this point, Lea was no longer afraid of getting scolded by Naminé. Even if he was scolded, it wouldn't matter anymore since there is no way now that he could get Riku back. "Naminé, I love him," Lea whispered sadly. "And I can never see him again after this."

Instead of the lecture he had been expecting, Naminé sympathetically held Lea's shoulder. "Lea, I'm not going to say I didn't warn you. But, I'm very sorry it had to come to this."

"I know," Lea whispered as he looked longingly at Riku.

"Sora, do you take this wonderful man, for better and for worst, to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do," Sora said in a chipper voice, smiling widely at his fiancé as he flushed.

"And do you Riku take this man, for better and for worst, to be your husband?"

Lea gulped as he failed to block out the rest of the words that were spoken. This was it.

"I do," Riku softly answered.

Lea gripped his knees tightly, one of them bouncing sporadically. Just with those two words, Riku was no longer his. He was Sora's husband the moment their lips would meet.

**_"Lea, you're such a great guy..."_**

Lea would no longer see Riku frequently with the happiness he felt when they were around each other. He would no longer see the innocent, blissful smile of the other.

**_"You're so handsome, Lea..."_**

He would no longer be able to cause Riku to smile. He wouldn't be there to hear his happy laughter.

**_"I love you, Lea..."_**

Lea would not be able to hear those words again. He wouldn't feel that warm, tingling feeling that settled in his heart and traveled to his fluttery stomach. He would no longer experience getting nauseous in the good way whenever Riku held his hand or hovered over him as he made love to him. It was over.

"If anyone can show just cause of why this couple should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace."

Lea's eyes snapped open. For a split moment, he was not in control of his actions or words. His jittery knee stopped to a halt and his body shot up from his chair so quickly that it knocked over behind him, causing a noise and grabbing the attention of nearly everybody sitting. More importantly, Riku finally looked back at Lea for what seemed like the longest time.

No. This was not over yet.

The words bubbled in his heaving chest and forced themselves out of Lea's dry throat. The redhead's hands clenched into fists right at his sides as he yelled them out confidently.

"I object!"

* * *

**A.N.: THE POWER OF THE CLIFFHANGERS. Don't shoot me please. ;-; I hate it when authors do this to me, too.**

**To gaara'sGurl101:** I would have done the same thing! But it's such a bold thing to do that I would probably just chicken out. BAWK BAWK. It's because all these people would be staring at me and I wouldn't want to the fiancé to punch me out holy crap, I'd be scared. Even if I do know a bit of karate! RIKU, SHOW LEA YOU LOVE HIM!

**To Ignie: **HELLO OPERATOR? Yes this is Yaoi Goddess of Doom. This reviewer here is threatening me with Demyx and Zexion! ...What? There's nothing you can do to help? Huh?! You hope I learn a lesson from all this? OH NO DONT LEAVE ME WITH IGNIE ALONE! She's gonna kill me! XD Haha, but joking aside, poor Lea! I made up for it a litttttle bit at the end! You might still need to call Demyx and Zexion for back up!

**To AuroraNyumun:** This is probably one of my fears. Somebody asking me to marry them in front of everybody! It just makes the person seem like a bad guy if they don't say yes, so it forced Riku to say it. Otherwise, he would just seem like a heartless, unwilling person who did not love Sora. I mean, he does love him, but he seems to love Lea in a more passionate way...The wedding is only going on because he feels obligated to. But Lea objected! YES. Score for Lea!


	16. Letting Go

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

**A.N.: This is a quick upload before my class starts. College is so busy!**

* * *

Lea never felt so humiliated in his life.

Objecting was the last thing someone would expect at a wedding. It something that was frowned upon. Lea learned this the hard way when he felt more eyes on him than ever.

He could feel the scorn and dislike from the stares he received from close friends and perhaps some family of those friends. Eyes were burning holes into his skin. It was a spiral of hatred for the redheaded male that he couldn't get himself out of.

Lea could already feel himself profusely sweat. It felt like his necktie was choking him. Maybe even some of the guests WISHED his necktie would choke him to death, right there and then.

"Would the man who objected please make his way to the altar." Even the priest sounded pissed in front of the eyes of God himself.

Lea glanced down at Naminé for some sort of aid. He was regretting that he ever shouted out an objection and was hoping for an easy way out of this predicament. But, the blonde looked at him with just as much shock as the strangers around them.

"I can't believe you just did that," her eyes spoke. There, Lea knew he was on his own, and felt like a man against the world.

Lea swallowed hard in the suddenly silent room. If he couldn't escape, then he would just have to follow through. He scampered through the row of seats, his feet finally making it to the carpeted aisle. Lea began to walk toward the couple stiffly, catching the stares from some familiar people at the party. Kairi, Roxas...they all shared this look of disbelief.

Sora on the other hand, looked hurtfully at Lea. The redhead felt terrible; how could he selfishly object on the happiest day of the brunette's life? Or rather how could he ruin a wedding that cost so much time to arrange? Lea ruined the years of affection Sora had for Riku with his two words.

Those two words had taken a toll on the guests. Murmurs erupted from the crowd. It was a mixture of disappointment and confusion. Lea was a stranger to all of them; his existence did not matter so much as the matrimony of these two men.

Lea was nervous as the priest had to resort to settling down the crowd with his words. Now the three of them had to be escorted somewhere where they could speak privately.

Lea hesitantly followed the couple, down a tunnel away from the crowd and away from the dirty looks he received. Riku clearly expressed his own shock with his expanded eyes. He was just as nervous as Lea, and the redhead knew why. After all, he was the one who had an affair behind Sora's back. If it weren't for him, Lea wouldn't be ruining a perfect wedding.

"I'm devastated," Sora started, his expression now confused instead of hurt. "...But, I'm also very confused."

Of course the brunette was confused. If he was clueless towards Riku's feelings, how did Lea expect him to even know why he objected to his very wedding?

Lea had to answer in the simplest, straightforward way. He's already gone too far; he might as well have gone all the way. "I'm in love with your fiancé," the redhead declared with a gulp.

"You, you're in love with Riku?" Sora gasped. It was clear this was news to the brunette. It slightly irritated Lea that he didn't even get the hint when he blurted out his objection. But, he was more nervous than any of the other emotions.

"Yes," Lea answered firmly. He soothed his stomach by rubbing it discreetly. It's been twisting into tight knots that won't seem to untie ever since he objected.

"...Riku, did you know this?" Sora asked as he searched for the silverette's eyes. But, Riku refused to answer as he avoided eye contact, both with Lea and Sora. A light embarrassed blush coated his features. "Riku..." he trailed off.

Lea noticed how distant Riku's eyes were. How could Lea inconsiderately put Riku into an uncomfortable position as this? He knew this was a horrible idea from the beginning. "I'm very sorry I did this at your wedding. I...I wish you two the best. Just say it was a harmless joke," the redhead murmured.

Lea felt it was about time for him to take his leave. He could reverse what had happened today. But, Riku's meek voice held him there from leaving. "Wait. I know this because I love him, too."

Lea turned around, eyebrows arched in surprise. Did Riku really admit this out loud to Sora?

"Riku," Sora's voice wavered with emotion. "What...what are you trying to say?"

"I'm, I'm in love with Lea. I kissed him, I went on dates with him, I...I made love to him. Sora, I'm so..."

"Riku," Sora said astounded. Lea's eyes shifted to whomever was speaking. He no longer felt like he belonged there. He was merely a bystander in the middle of a crumbling relationship.

Or so it would be assumed to be crumbling. In fact, the brown haired male did not shout at Riku. There were the first signs of tears in his cerulean eyes, but he was not hysterically crying.

"Lea." The redhead did not expect his name to be called and he jerked his head towards Sora. "Does Riku make you happy?"

It was odd that Sora would ask a question like that. He should be telling Lea to leave, but instead he was asking this. "Riku...Riku does make me happy."

"I see. But, Riku makes me really happy, too," Sora argued as he stared down at his feet. "That means your reason is not convincing at all," he said confidently.

Lea bit his lip, wanting to refuse Sora's explanation. It was correct that he couldn't just take Riku away for a simple reason as that. But, he still loved the silver haired male. "Riku doesn't only make me happy. He makes me complete."

"What do you mean by that?"

Sora stared at the redhead as he continued to speak. As Lea stumbled for words that were coming straight from the heart, his green orbs focused on Riku. Sometimes, his sentences were choppy and fell short, but the powerful emotions behind them eventually grabbed the silverette's full attention. Sometimes the tall male struggled for words from being embarrassed, but he pressed on with a gentle smile.

"When I first saw Riku, sitting there by himself…I thought he was beautiful. I never expected this to grow stronger than an intrigued infatuation, but it did. I fell hard for Riku, despite the fact that it was immoral. I thought it was harmless since I chose not to pursue him any further than a kiss. But, he needed me and I was glad to be there for him. There, I chose to be his source of happiness. There, I spent enough time with him to fall in love with him."

Lea saw Riku cover his mouth in awe of his words. A vermillion blush spread across his fair cheeks as he stood completely still in an admired silence.

"Lea," Riku whispered softly, looking at the taller male.

"Riku, is it true? Does Lea really make you that happy? Or were you just in a weakened state?" Sora asked with curiosity lining his voice.

Initially, Lea was offended that Sora would ask such a question. As seconds rolled by slowly, he then realized that he would like the answer to that question himself. Lea did not doubt Riku's feelings for a moment, but if he found out he was manipulating the silver haired male's feelings, he would be devastated.

Riku stood there in thought, giving a short indignant hum. Unlike Lea, Riku's words were a bit more eloquent as if he were mulling over his thoughts for a while. "Initially, when Lea had first kissed me, I thought that it was his attention that I craved," he started slowly. His hand fidgeted with the sleeve of his tuxedo as he spoke.

"I knew it wasn't right, however, since it felt like I was using him. But, it dawned on me that I might have liked him as time went on. It scared me at first, and I convinced myself that I was not starting to like him. You can only convince yourself for so long before your heart reacts in such a way that it gets harder to control what you say, what you do, and how you feel. Although he made the first move and no longer pursued me, I did whatever it took to be with him. I even lied one time because I was so desperate. But, it was no longer me trying to feel better. It was me unconditionally falling in love…"

It was Lea's turn to gawk at the silver haired male's words. He would remember what Riku had said and would keep those words locked in his heart to keep. Riku's words were as heartfelt as his own. There, Lea felt as if they shared a special and close moment.

But, Lea remembered there was still somebody else there, spectating and listening carefully to both of their confessions. Although Lea's heart raced from Riku's words, awkwardness slowly took over and touched his nerves, causing him to stand stiffly once more. "Riku, why did you choose to marry me?" Sora asked, not yet commenting about their sides of the story.

"Sora, I felt pressured," Riku truthfully said as newly formed tears gathered at the corner of his eyes. "I'm sorry. You asked me in front of so many people that I felt compelled to say yes."

"Does this mean that you don't love me?" Sora asked with a bite of his lip. "Or that you fell out of love with me?"

"…Sora." Riku hesitated in answering, afraid that his response would only further upset the male. "I never fell out of love with you. But, maybe...maybe through the constant neglecting, I think the passion left us."

"You felt neglected?" Sora asked sympathetically. "Riku...Riku I'm so sorry...I didn't even realize." Sora gnawed at his bottom lip and he abruptly hugged the silverette. "I'm so stupid...!"

Lea uncomfortably looked at the pair, where the brunette embraced Riku into a tight hug. He was about to intervene with words, but Sora beat him to it as he separated slowly from Riku.

"Hey, can you...I want to see something," Sora murmured, taking some steps back. "I want you two to kiss."

"What?" Lea and Riku shared in exclamation, both with wide eyes and a wild blush. The redhead was hoping for some sort of explanation. What person would want their lover to kiss someone else right in front of him?

But, Sora was not changing his mind and he stared with intent. So, Lea gulped as he faced Riku and held him carefully around the waist. The silverette was hesitant with Sora's demands and was just as confused as the man holding him, but he complied as Lea held him in an embracing, warm manner. Riku was embarrassed as he leaned in towards Lea's quivering lips, his mouth just as equally shaking with nerves.

The two looked into each other's eyes before their lips met in a kiss. It was soft, but what lacked in pressure made up for with the length of their kiss. Riku's hands gently grabbed Lea's face to tilt it, his lips patiently claiming his over and over.

"You guys really do love each other," Sora murmured, causing the two to separate embarrassedly. He scratched the tip of his nose and his eyes were pained.

Lea felt sympathetic for the brunette. If this had happened to him, he would...he wouldn't even know what to do. He felt compelled to apologize, but the apology wouldn't do justice coming from him. He stole Riku's heart and an "I'm sorry" would only fall short.

"Take him," Sora said after a long while.

"What?" Lea whispered.

"I know this isn't very traditional. But, I want you to be with him," Sora further explained, his eyebrows arching. He looked at Riku for some form of understanding, but he received none since Riku was just as confused.

"I, I don't understand," Riku hesitated in saying, eyes questioning and shocked. "You want us to be together?"

"As hard as it is, yes Riku. Even though we spent our whole lives together, I want you to be with Lea."

"Why would you throw away all of that?" Lea asked curiously.

Sora seemed to have trouble maintaining an unwavering voice. "Because, you make Riku happy. Which I have been unable to do. So, for his sake, I want you to be with him."

"Sora," Riku said unsure and hesitant. He was pulled by the shorter male into a tight loving squeeze.

"Be with Lea," Sora said firmly, hugging the silverette closely. Riku uncertainly locked eyes with his fiancé and it caused Sora to smile. "Riku, don't look like that. I'll always be your friend, no matter what. You'll never lose me."

With Sora's words, Lea finally understood him as a person. The brunette was never the bad guy that he imagined he would be. He never meant to ignore Riku, nor did he ever mean to isolate him. In the end, Sora was just someone clueless as he initially thought, except he was actually a generous and kind boy.

"Now go. I'll deal with the guests," Sora kindly said as he rubbed circles on Riku's quivering back.

"Thank you," Lea murmured as he gently grabbed the silverette's hand, easing him away from the short male. "I couldn't be more grateful right now."

Sora held his hand up in a noncommittal way, waving it nonchalantly. "It's fine." Then his expression turned serious as he looked at Lea. "Just...don't hurt him okay? He's the most important person in my life."

"I'll take care of him," Lea assured as he nodded and held Riku closer. He could feel Riku's shoulders shake from his sobs. He rubbed his arm for comfort, giving Sora a small smile before leaving the wedding. Lea looked down sorrowfully at Riku's teary face, hugging him more tightly. From this point on, Lea would not allow his love to get hurt.

It was a promise that Lea was sure to keep.

* * *

**A.N: Next and last chapter won't be in for a while. I'm already getting so much homework. Jeeeez.**

**To Ignie:** Oh wow that movie sounds hilarious! At least somebody understood sign language. If I was deaf, I would just rip the groom away from the bride and just shake my head. No explanation needed! Too bad it's not that easy. What is Ienzo actually doing?! Ah, oh well, let him keep working! Yeah, he has Kairi! Though I'm not a huge fan of that couple either. XD

**To AuroraNyumun:** I would be so awkward in that type of situation. I would just melt into a puddle right there. Goodbye world! I am now liquid! I would rather die than do that. That's ruining money spent for the wedding and also just creates tension. That's not my scene!

**To gaara'sGurl101: **LET THE GAMES BEGIN! Who would like to volunteer as tribute for Riku's husband? Yes, you, over there with the red hair? What's your name? Oh, Lea, is it? Make wonderful babies after marriage with Riku! Kill Sora! I mean...no! Don't kill him!


	17. Together at Last

_Summary: Lea knew his small mannerisms and knew what type of coffee he ordered every day. But he didn't know his name. They would soon learn the art of slowly falling in love even if it was wrong. Lea/Riku coffee shop AU_

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Kingdom Hearts!

* * *

Lea held Riku closely on his couch the exact night of his wedding.

The fireplace was burning brightly with flames and was warming the couple who settled underneath a woolen blanket. They had not bothered to change their clothing. Only their blazers were removed and ties were loosely undone for comfort.

Lea could feel the lack of assurance the other male had. His hand absentmindedly continued to rub Riku's shoulder affectionately in understanding. Green orbs stared in the lick of flames in thought. He really hoped the silver haired male was not having any second thoughts, especially after he was finally together with Riku. It would be a shame if the younger male suddenly changed his mind.

"Did we do the wrong thing?" Riku asks timidly in the silence, the soft sound of the crackling flames the only noise besides him talking. "Am I a horrible person for doing this?"

Lea didn't have a direct answer prepared for any of these questions. It was just as he suspected; Riku really was unsure after the turn of events that happened today. Lea's other arm wrapped around Riku's frame and cuddled against him warmly.

"You're not a horrible person. You just followed your heart," Lea answered.

As Riku contemplated thoughtfully, Lea buried his nose into his hair. Silver tresses tickled the tip of his nose and smelled sweetly of shampoo. Underlying, Lea could smell what was distinctly Riku's scent. It was gentle, washing over his senses.

He didn't want Riku to regret the choice of being together. Lea gently turned the silverette's face, his lips instantly brushing against his cheek.

"Do you regret it?" Lea asked nervously.

Riku stared off into the fire. The hesitance of his answer made Lea anxious and fearful, his heart starting to beat harder. If Riku said yes, he was unsure of what would happen next.

Then the silver haired male shook his head immediately, looking at Lea. "No...no I would never," Riku said with a frown, grabbing Lea's face gently with his hands. "Please, don't think like that." Lea's eyes expanded as Riku's hands traveled to his shirt and undid the buttons. "I would never regret this," he continued. His hands warmly grabbed Lea's hands and placed them on one side of his revealed chest. "Can't you feel it?"

Lea's closed as he concentrated on the skin beneath his hand. It was warm. A strong heartbeat reverberated through his palm. "Yes, I could," Lea sighed with a smile, opening his eyes halfway.

"I love you," Riku whispered, holding the other male's face once more. Lea felt his body press against him, guiding him slowly onto his back. "I wouldn't ever take this back." Lea didn't say a word as Riku pecked his lips gently. Several times in a row, his lips grazed and claimed the willing mouth.

It was surreal how they were here together on this very couch. There were many obstacles in his path, and finally he was with Riku. It almost didn't occur to Lea as reality. But, Riku's hands and lips convinced him otherwise.

"Hey, Lea?" Riku mumbled after a particularly long kiss.

"Hmm?" the redhead mumbled distractedly.

"Do you want to try the, uh, other way?" Lea stared at the male on top of him, silent and confused. What did Riku mean by that? Riku swayed nervously, playing with the tips of his short hair. "You know..." he mumbled with a light blush. As clarification he sat on Lea's lap, his eyebrow arching suggestively.

"Oh, you mean..." Lea said in realization. Riku smiled shyly and gave a meek nod in response.

"Call me weird, but I kind of want you to officially claim me," he mumbled sheepishly, nibbling on his own bottom lip. "So do you want to?"

"May I?" Lea asked wispily with a dazed look to his eyes.

With an affirmative nod, Riku leaned back and pulled Lea with him, laying flat on the cushioned seat underneath the redhead. "Do whatever you want," Riku said with a wily smile. The submissiveness was a generous gift that Lea was too embarrassed to take right away. The options of "whatever he wanted" were endless. Lea's eyes glazed over as he stared upon his silver haired prize.

Yes, the possibilities were definitely endless.

"Lea, you're looking at me kind of funny," he mumbled shyly. "You all right?"

"Yeah, it's just...there's a lot to taste," Lea answered awkwardly, his eyes continuing to eat up Riku's body. The silver haired male blushed as he grabbed Lea's face and guided his lips to his neck.

"You, you can start here," he said as he offered his skin. Soft, beautiful skin was in reach of Lea's lips. Lea instantly tasted what was Riku, nipping and kissing at his skin. The male shifted in response, but Lea froze once he earned a soft moan in response.

That was something he would like to hear more of.

"Lea, can you dim the lights," Riku whispered, making Lea's ear immediately flush. The redhead's hand clumsily reached for the light switch on the wall, switching it off. The room significantly became dim, the fireplace their only source of light.

The glint from the flames shined in Riku's eyes, his eyelids significantly drooping. "Take care of me," he murmured, pushing Lea's head down to kiss him. "And let me take care of you..."

Lea was embarrassed when Riku's tone alone had already made him hot. His body shifted to aid the hands that were beginning to undress him and pull his new unclothed form towards the body underneath him.

As the night went on, more clothing was placed into an unfolded, neat pile on the side of them. Riku clung onto Lea's shoulders, the sweat on his body glowing a warm peach from the fire.

Lea's eyes gazed at the gasping, bouncing form of his lover. The blanket was draped around Riku's shoulders and proceeded to slip off slowly to the floor. He freely moaned as Riku's hips swiveled and plunged down, swallowing him up each time. Lea was only able to stare at the man on top of him, the fire a warm blur in the background.

He was tempted to move his hips upward and almost did before Riku held them down by forcing his weight onto him. "L-let me," he insisted in a hurried growl. Even if Lea was inside him, it still was as if Riku was still in control of the situation. The gentle dominance and desire to make Lea feel good never disappeared even when Lea was the one inside him.

"Riku, I...please," the redhead whispered, unable to form words. Riku pressed against him so closely that Lea could feel the heave of his chest, the heat and length of his need grinding against his stomach.

"Lea," Riku breathed raggedly. Then one simple shift of his hips and he gasped brokenly, gripping the taller male tightly. "F-fine, take over..."

Lea blushed at the request, finally able to move his hips. As he set a paced rhythm, Lea stared as the silver haired male buckled over, grabbing his locks of red hair desperately. "Yes...just like that...!"

The words left the redheaded male panting. He was stunned beyond belief, but his body automatically kept moving as he heard those sweet murmurs of pleasured approval. "Oh, Lea!" He was earning gratification, a fuel to his drive. He was no longer standing still and allowing Riku to shower him with pleasure.

Lea held Riku's hips, using them as leverage to thrust upward. He wanted those moans and earned back so much more than he expected, hearing delighted cries in response to his actions. The warmth that was Riku's walls were secondary to the hot inducing noises.

Lea forgot where the both of them were even making love. All that existed was Riku. All that existed was hoping for the silver haired male to realize he was the one for him.

Lea stared intently at Riku's face, watching as his crystal eyes rolled back, eyelids closing a second later. A warm, sticky substance landed on Lea's chest, acting as a weak sealant between their skin. The redhead's vision became blurry when he let go only a moment after, his mouth open in a soundless gasp.

"Oh...Lea..."

Lea felt his body get pulled forward. His mind registered a warm chest, where his head currently rested on. It moved up and down rapidly, the sound of a fast heartbeat penetrating his ear.

"Riku," Lea breathed out, hugging the male tightly. He couldn't say anymore after that experience; all he could do was murmur the male's name over and over. He heard the silverette's soft breathing, rolling off of him to occupy the small sliver of space between the male and couch. Riku immediately grabbed onto Lea's chest, his head lifted to peer up at the tall male.

The redhead felt the grip of Riku's fingers on his shoulders. "I know we made the right choices," Riku whispered with a loving look. "And I don't regret it at all."

The redhead grinned in response, his fingertips going along Riku's jawline in affection towards the male. His nose nuzzled against the crown of Riku's head, brushing against his hair.

"You make me really happy..." Riku added with a sigh, closing his eyes. Then he opened them, holding the side of Lea's cheek. A magnificent smile lit across Riku's sweaty face, showing his genuineness. "I love you."

Lea smiled back widely, returning Riku's affection with a kiss. He was glad he could make the other male feel loved. Belonged. It was something that Riku wanted for a long time. Lea stared as the silver haired male closed his eyes to rest, Riku's forehead resting against the flat of his chest.

"I'm finally where I want to be..."

"As am I," Lea replied with a smile tugging at his lips.

* * *

**A.N.: I managed to finish this story because it needed to be done with the commitment I put into it. SO without further ado, thank you for all of your support! Can't wait to PM once more because I have noooo time. I'm actually writing this late at night because it's the only time I have before I crash and fall asleep! So, next story will be a Lea/Riku with canon worlds, characters, and scenery. After that? I might poop out another Lea/Riku AU ooooor...Terra and Riku. Yes. Terra and Riku. It must be shipped. There's nothing I can find for them. It must be done. And what do you guys think of a short sequel to this story? I was thinking about it, but it could be possible. it would be relatively shorter than this story.**

**To AuroraNyumun:** I can't even handle being in front of people for a presentation. I get so scared! Sometimes, I wish for the day that I get sick so I can be excused. And Riku shall be kissed everywhere by Lea because it shall be done!

**To gaara'sGurl101:** They can't honeymoon without marrying! Well, then again, it doesn't always have to be traditional. Let the honeymoon commence!

**To Ignie:** I loooove reading gay doujins too Ienzo! :D Sora can have anybody! He's too nice and farts smiles. Who wouldn't want him? And Lea shall make the Riku happy FOREVER until the end of time!


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